


Your Obedient Servant

by skimmillk



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: A lot of cliffhangers whoops, Acxa is a bitch whoops, Alpha Keith (Voltron), Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Angst, Arranged Marriage, Awkward Lance (Voltron), Chef Hunk (Voltron), Crossdressing, Does that count as crossdressing?, First Kiss, Fluff, Heats, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, I love them so much, Keith is immediately weak for lance lmao c h i l l, Kidnapping, Knight Shiro (Voltron), Krolia and Lance bonding time, Krolia is the Queen she deserves to be, Lance basically gets the shit kicked out of him, Lance is gonna be in a dress like the whole time and I’m not sorry, Langst, M/M, More character will be tagged as they appear, More tags as I go, Nobility Lance, Omega Lance (Voltron), Prince Keith (Voltron), Red is a horse in this lmao all the lions are, Royal Advisor Coran, Servant Allura, Servant Pidge, Servant Romelle, Shiro is a fucking smartass and I’m not sorry, So many cliffhangers, Swords, Taller Keith, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Trials, Violence, a/b/o dynamics, if you’re just here for smut it’ll happen eventually trust me aksjjwjs, klance, klance will be the fucking death of me, lots of fluff, omegaverse AU, slowburn who??? idk her, sorry about that, taller keith is my weakness, there’s more plot than just their dynamics ok
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-26
Updated: 2019-05-05
Packaged: 2019-08-30 02:41:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 45,431
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16756312
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skimmillk/pseuds/skimmillk
Summary: Lance was a bit of a rarity. Not only was he from a very rich family, but he was an Omega — something that was rare to come by nowadays. Male Omegas weren’t exactly flooding the streets, especially the kind at his financial standing. Being in a situation like this, Lance couldn’t exactly say that he was surprised to find himself in an arranged marriage, but that didn’t mean he was particularly happy about it. Sure, he wasn’t the oldest child, actually the youngest of five, but he was the only Omega, so, unfortunately for him, Lance was the bride being given off instead, wearing a solemn frown as the carriage rolled forward along the bumpy cobblestone path towards the castle looming in front of them, and Lance realized he could already see the colorful shadows from the stained glass windows of the cathedral at even such a distance.ORLance is an Omega, one of the very few left unmated, and he was rich. Keith is an Alpha, born first in line to the throne as the only child of the King and Queen. Strings are pulled, and each find themselves being forced into an arranged marriage, with just under a month until the wedding. Will love blossom between them? Or will fate keep them apart?





	1. Chapter 1

The air was crisp and clean that morning as the first leaf of fall swirled gracefully towards the ground, the slight speckling of warmer colors contrasting the dripping temperatures with their beautiful hue on each of the trees, and in a matter of time, the trees would all be deep shades of red and orange and brown, and then bare, and Lance has watched this scenario unfold countless times from his bedroom window, resting his cheek against his palm, his body weight rested on the windowsill. Though, there was something different about the air that morning, though Lance couldn’t tell if it was the fact that the first waft of fresh bread had reached his skilled nose a moment later than usual, or the strange shuffling of servants behind his bedroom door, Lance sensing their presence by the shifting of shadows blocking the light at varying places as their feet quickly moved, a congregation seeming to form outside his door, though not one moved to open it. The town seemed more abuzz that chill September morning, and Lance was finding himself on his toes or fidgeting with his thumbs as still no one came to wake him.

This was strange. Surely someone would come to wake him at this point, yes?

The answer came hours later as Lance lounged around his room, still adorned in his sleek silk pajamas in that deep blue color that everything he owned was in, minus the additional gold and jeweled trimming that was added by the local seamstresses with such hand craftsmanship, as to not upset the only male Omega in all of the kingdom. The door pushed open, the slow, almost uncomfortably high-pitched creak signaling the entrance and reminding Lance that there was no way he’d ever be able to subtly leave his room. He put down whatever book he was staring at, since Lance didn’t fancy reading very much, though with all of the books that had been purchased for him, he might as well make it seem like he was skimming them, at the very least. 

“Your clarity,” one of the servants greeted, and Lance gave a small acknowledging nod as he eyes flicked down towards the large letter in the older woman’s hand. “There’s been a letter delivered here for you.”

Before Lance got the chance to stand, the woman was already in front of him, her grey-haired little head bowing to him as her arms held the letter towards him, and Lance hesitantly accepted. With nervous hands, Lance carefully peeled the wax seal that was recognizable the moment Lance had seen such a deep shade of red, as the seal of the Kingdom, the letter folding open just as slowly as Lance allowed it to.

_Lord McClain of Altea,_

Ah, so this was technically for his father. Oh well, everything was, that hardly bothered Lance as he continued reading.

_It is with great honor that we propose a union between our two families, a gesture that will undoubtedly see prosperity and joy for not only the future generations of royalty, but for my subjects that have longed for such a union. My son gladly awaits the transport of the delicate flower in your household to our confines, and it is with open arms that we accept him among us, to be betrothed to the kingdom and married once the date falls upon the Prince’s twenty-first birthday near the edge of the upcoming month._

Lance stared at the inked words on the page, his eyes following each curve and line as if he were committing it to memory, without reading the contents as his eyes scanned each line over and over and over again with a sort of frantic vigor. 

He should’ve expected this really, after all, he was one of the only Omegas left available in the whole kingdom, and he came from a wealthy family that had been close to the royals socially for quite some time, presumably before Lance was even born, and he had never been told otherwise. 

If you couldn’t tell already, Lance was a bit of a rarity. Not only was he from a very rich family (not quite royalty, but not far off either), but he was an Omega — something that was rare to come by nowadays. Male Omegas weren’t exactly flooding the streets, especially the kind at his financial standing. Again, being in a situation like this, Lance couldn’t exactly say that he was surprised to find himself in an arranged marriage, but that didn’t mean he was particularly happy about it. Sure, he wasn’t the oldest child — far from it actually, as the youngest of five — which is who would normally be given off for marriage to boost social and financial stature of his family, but his siblings were all Alphas, and while they were attractive and intelligent, Alphas weren’t very appealing, especially to another Alpha suitor like the prince. 

Before the letter could even be released from his grip, Lance was being guided out of his room (which was the only way he could ever leave out of fear of him somehow injuring himself or catching any disease that could possibly harm him) by several more servants that must’ve filed in while Lance was busy having his world implode around him. His eyes danced around the elegant halls with the light eggshell walls trimmed with golden patterns and a stripe of blue carpet adorning the middle of the polished oak floor, as a walkway of sorts, with several porcelain pillars standing against the wall, with painted portraits of his mother and father hanging up for the world to see in the confines of the large manor. He was led down towards the baths, not even having to strip down himself as he stood still, only lifting his feet to allow the silk fabric to be pulled off of his smooth and slender legs, kept that way from the constant pampering he received as a result of his rarity. Not that he really opposed this special treatment, but he wasn’t out in the streets shouting for it. If anything, he’d like to be treated with some semblance of normalcy, and not like he was some ethereal being that couldn’t be touched in fear of tainting his holy nature and purity. 

The bath was already drawn for him, the water delightfully warm as he stepped inside and slid down onto his rear, his lean figure submerged completely underneath the surface for a simple moment to soak his entire body, while the servants surrounding him looked ready to pull him up at any moment as if he’d drown. Their constant supervision made him want to drown, though he kept that sentiment to himself, chuckling to himself in the comfort of his own room.

He came back up and pushed the dripping bangs away from his face, and leaning back against the cool porcelain of the tub, the servants began to wash through his hair, the suds of the scented soap dissolving in the surface of the water and creating a fuzzy glow around the Omega submerged, and it was moments like this that Lance didn’t entirely hate. Sometimes, the gentle fingers massaging his scalp would even draw soft purrs from the young boy, though he tried to hide those out of embarrassment. He tilted his head back and looked up towards the ceiling, following the lines that led up to an imprinted point in the center, where the roof was the highest on the roof inverse of the pale ceiling his eyes were currently locked upon. 

“I heard the news, your highness,” a voice spoke from the doorway that immediately drew over Lance’s attention, an amused smile pulling at his features. 

“Congratulations on the engagement,” Veronica, one of his two sisters, spoke again, walking towards the tub to kneel beside it at Lance’s level, and the Omega scoffed.

“Oh yeah, thanks. I can’t wait to be married to someone I hardly know, and from what I’ve heard—” Lance paused, glancing at the servants to make sure they were focused on something else before he leaned forward and spoke in a hushed whisper. “—he’s a bit of a sourpuss.” Veronica snickered and waved him off, shaking her head softly. 

It wasn’t a lie, rumors spread of a handsome yet secluded prince, lashing out at anyone who opposed him or insulted him, though commonly he was overreacting, and numerous servants had quit because of his harsh treatment and attitude. That was a little threatening to someone that was seen so beneath the rest of society like Omegas were, even if Lance was prized and valued. He really had no say in anything, being taught to rather be seen than heard, so often that if quiet and still enough, people sometimes couldn’t even tell he was there. It would happen more often than not if he wasn’t so dolled up in silk and gold and jewels at all times, sticking out like a sore thumb among the blank white hallways.

“Lance, please, don’t say such things about his royal highness,” she scolded gently, though the shaking of her voice from impending laughter told Lance otherwise. 

“I will say whatever I please about whomever I please, actually. He’s going to be my husband, is he not? I think I’m allowed to tease,” Lance retorted with a cocky smirk, a kind of expression he only revealed while in the presence of those he was comfortable with, one being his sister, his elder by a few years. 

“You better not let father hear you say that,” Veronica said with a hint of severity behind her tone, and Lance hushed up.

Their father was a kind man, he really was, but he was quick to anger when it came to their royal highnesses in the castle across the kingdom. He was nothing short but loyal, that was obvious, and had molded Lance to be the image of grace and dignity when in their presence, even if the highest members of the court he had ever met being other Lords, like his father, and he didn’t like them very much. They all smelled of spoiled milk and poshness, and Lance didn’t very much care for it, opting to leave them and his father alone whenever they visited. 

“I know that, obviously. I’m not an idiot.”

“I never said you were Lance, but I just thought I should remind you. I know how much you… would rather not be in the company of people like that,” Veronica eased, trying to conjure an easy way to convey what she wanted without upsetting Lance or alerting the servants, though they didn’t dare share what was spilled among the children of the Lord. 

“I really don’t know how he expects me to hold my tongue with this guy. All I’ve heard about him is how mean he is, and how insufferable he is. I’m just a child!”

“Lance, eighteen is not a child.”

“It’s close enough.”

Granted, Lance had only been eighteen as long as this passing July, so not more than a few months now, though word had spread of the young Omega coming of age to be wedded, and he wouldn’t lie, people fighting for his hand was certainly a confidence booster, although conflicting. While his heart told him he wasn’t a prize to be won, the world around him was telling him the direct opposite, and he wasn’t sure which he desired more. 

“You can do this, Lance,” Veronica soothed, placing a soft hand on one of Lance’s jutted shoulders accompanied by a soft but proud smile. “I know it’ll be hard, being away from family and having to deal with snobby rich people way more than you already do.” That coaxed a small snicker from the Omega, and his sister continued. “But you’ll be fine. I know you’re strong enough to hold your own without having us to protect you. You’ve given father an earful before, and I suspect you can do it again to someone else.”

Veronica was right with that — Lance had sparked several arguments between him and his father over his treatment, or how he was upset being told to hush up one more time than he approved of, and for the most part, Lance had gotten his way, with his family at least. Being allowed to speak out of turn or without being directed to, not seen as an object of lust and desire at all points of the day, and being able to roam wherever he wanted (within the manor at least) with only the supervision of one hired guard or servant that lived in the quarters next to the horse’s stables behind the manor. 

Still, Lance couldn’t help but find this scenario different. The royal family was much different than his own family, even if they shared a commonality in riches and respect. Omegas were rare, and being rare, they were protected, but that didn’t stop the objectification, the lustful wants and desires that manifested with Lance’s name in their mouths and body in their minds. Any harsh treatment of them could be punishable by measures even as extreme as death (the wealthy Omegas at least, which were an even rarer species and an Omega along the normal common folk), and yet, on the social scale, Omegas were still at the bottom, seen as nothing more than eye candy and a fancy addition to a family, needed to do nothing more than look pretty and produce children at a rate that Lance saw as overwhelming, on both his mind and, obviously, his body.

Of course, there was always an odd sense of pride that came with that knowledge, that now, if everything went well at least, Lance would be carrying the children of the prince, next in line to the throne once the King and Queen of today passed on. But that would be after Lance could be able to tolerate him, and that would no doubt take a while, if it ever happened at all.

“I appreciate your faith in me,” Lance hummed with a fond smile as it tugged at his lips, a soft blush rising to his features as the servants began to wash his body a little lower than he was comfortable with. Lance was sure he was more than capable of washing himself off, if nothing else, so he never understood why he’d never been allowed to.

Honestly, Lance didn’t think he’d ever done anything completely on his own. Not even walking, there was always a crowd about whenever he simply had to walk down the corridor to pee. Really, peace and quiet and a bit of free will was a luxury that Lance had never known, and he didn’t think he ever would.

His sister gave a small nod, and as soon as she had arrived, she was gone, disappearing behind the large wooden door and leaving Lance to himself and the servants, though he never really spoke with them. Not because he thought they were beneath him or anything (god, how hypocritical would that be), but because he was nothing more than an object to them, just another thing they had to clean and polish, and not another living, breathing human being. 

The water had begun to get cold, and with a quick rinse of his head and body, Lance was guided out of the tub and draped in a sleek robe that matched every other pair of apparel he had, before being motioned towards his bedroom to be dressed. 

A fully dressed mannequin was awaiting him inside, and Lance had to surprise a groan as to not alert the staff that eagerly dragged him inside. There was enough gold to blind a man if held at the right angle, and Lance was sure there was more gold and jewels than actual cloth or fabric. Another thing was the obvious lack of pants, replaced instead by a large skirt that touched the floor, with a trail of fabric and lace that Lance could only estimate was around twenty feet long and such a brilliant blue with glimmering specks that made it look my like the night sky than a dress, and Lance almost felt bad for actually having to wear it. 

Getting dressed had the be the worst part of his pampering. There was simply nothing pleasant about behind shoved into a tight corset that made it difficult to breath, especially when he was thin enough to definitely not need such a garment thrown into the mix with everything else. 

The top portion of the dress was simple, yet elegant enough for Lance to enjoy it, a deep blue, almost navy, fabric dipping off his shoulders to expose the prominent bones that came with his thin stature, both from his minimum lifestyle and Omega genetics that wouldn’t allow him to grow any larger than a normal female, and even then he was still a bit thinner than a man should be, Omega or not. The sleeves moved down his arms until a small loop went around his middle finger on each hand, the delicate fingers being cover in gold rings and chains that showed up the wealth of the McClain family. The corset did a good job giving Lance a more prominent hourglass finger, though his childbearing hips did enough to sell that illusion on their own without it, but he didn’t protest as the strings were tightened behind him.

The dress was enough in Lance’s opinion, making him look elegant and actually like a royal, instead of the simple nobility, though they technically weren’t too far off. And yet, more accessories were draped upon him, a transparent veil being placed over top of his groomed locks and sliding down his back and the bump of the skirt where the underskirt made his rear appear more jutted, the sheer gold cloth dangling right along where tis thighs would be if not covered by the skirt, held up by a gold chain that rested around his head, a deep blue jewel in the center, right against his forehead right underneath where his bangs stopped. A pair of hanging earrings were pressed into the small holes on his earlobes, blue fluorite jewels encapsulated in sparkling gold, bumping against his jawline that was further accentuated by the cast of shadows the veil created on his neck. Around his throat was a pure gold choker that shielded just underneath his jaw and ending right above his collarbone, a large fluorite crystal identical to the earrings in hue placed right in the center. A pair of short heels hugged his feet uncomfortably tight, but Lance had gotten used to the pain by having to wear a pair similar to these on most days, all except for when he lounged in his silk pajamas, barefoot and carefree. 

A small gathering had appeared at the base of steps as Lance turned the corner towards the staircase, the clicking of his heels drawing their attentions away from the small conversations they had been having before Lance arrived. Holding up the skirt in his hands as to not trip on it while walking down the winding stairs, Lance kept his head bowed and stayed silent, simply letting his appearance say all it had to, and the silence that fell through the room served to show Lance that it was working. 

“Lance…” his mother spoke up first, parting the crowd and walking towards her son once he reached the ground floor, so close to the steps that the long trail of fabric still creased on them. “You look incredible.”

A woman of short stature and light skin stood before Lance, the definition of grace as she kept her hands cupped before her, her kind eyes gazing up into Lance’s with such a look that could’ve gotten Lance teary-eyed if she wasn’t smiling.

Being the only other Omega in the family, Lance found himself spending most of his time with his mother, when he wasn’t being suffocated by the constant presence of servants in a close, protective proximity. They were close, no one doubted it, and Lance just realized that moving to the castle to be betrothed to the prince meant leaving her behind, and this suddenly became much harder to do. 

“Thank you, mother,” Lance spoke with a delicate voice, the older woman taking his hands into his own and giving them that gentle squeeze that only mothers seemed to accomplish. “I’ll miss you.”

“Me too, my child, but I’m so proud of you.” Letting their hands slip away as his father approached, Lance noticed the small weight that had accumulated in his palm, glancing at the small, golden ring that had been placed in it. It was his mother’s ring, and with a sad smile, Lance slid it on his slender ring finger, the gold a perfect fit around the tan digit. 

“The carriage has arrived, my Lord,” one of the servants chirped up from the doorway, and Lance could already hear the whinnying of horses outside, the unfamiliar scent of people he had never met wafting in shortly after.

“Come, my son, it’s time for us to go.”

Lance nodded towards his father, cupping his hands to mirror his mother before following the lead Alpha in the house at such a distance as to not get too close, just as he had been taught. The breeze rustled Lance’s dress slightly and sent a small shiver down his spine, and a servant was rushing to clip a navy cloak that had a trail just as long as the skirt did around the boy’s shoulders, hooked on right at the base of his throat, right where the golden choker ended. With the assistance of the guards sent to retrieve him and his father, Lance stepped into the carriage after the Alpha, keeping his head down the whole time. Then, looking up, Lance waved to his family that had accumulated at the doorway, smiling brightly despite the pang in his heart as the crack of the reins echoed and the carriage moved off of the McClain property and towards the enormous castle looming in the distance. 

Wearing a solemn frown as the carriage rolled forward along the bumpy cobblestone path towards the castle looming in front of them, Lance noticed that he could already see the colorful shadows from the stained glass windows of the cathedral at even such a distance. With a small uncomfortable groan, Lance adjusted the glimmering cloak that was draped over him, the fabric sitting around his neck a little too snugly, and Lance just overall felt very claustrophobic and stuffy in this small space, even if he had all of the room in the world to move around and an open window right beside him. The ride there was long, uncomfortable, silent, and Lance has considered jumping from the horse-drawn carriage several times on the slow journey from his family’s manor on the other side of the kingdom, closer to the forest at the border, rather than the actual civilization he supposedly lived among. 

As the carriage made its way through the kingdom, Lance could feel the prying and curious eyes of the common folk and peasants eyes him from the small window, all attention on him, and Lance didn’t like it one bit. He felt odd, ostracized and secluded from everyone else around him. 

Finally the carriage stopped, and Lance stepped from it once the door was opened for him, sapphire eyes blown wide at the magnificent architecture in front of him as he surveyed what would probably be his new home from now on. The sight of the castle would probably be enough to help Lance hold his tongue as the prissy royals ordered him around, because even if he were married to the prince, his identity as an Omega would be nothing but a hindrance that would prevent him from being talked to like another person, and instead like a child, someone below them, unworthy of respect. Lance had never been good at that however, holding his tongue, but Lance knew well enough as to not start something with those that could easily take his head with as much as a simple word and a wave of the hand. 

With a group of guards behind him and a few in front, Lance was escorted from the carriage side and towards the actual entrance of the castle, Lance’s footsteps seeming to echo along with the incessant clanking of the metal armor each knight wore around themselves, their threatening swords shining in their holsters serving as another reminder to just how different this place was than his home. Lance swallowed a nervous lump that had formed in his throat and tried to not think of it much, since these negative feelings could tinge his scent with sourness, and he was supposed to be trying to make a good impression here, even if he was technically being gifted to the royals for their son. Lance kept his hands politely cupped in front of him, his eyes quickly scanning the smooth marble floors and walls, gold and valuable jewels brimming and adorning from everywhere and anywhere they could, and it was gorgeous, Lance wouldn’t lie. It was a much lovelier sight than even his beloved home back miles away, but it didn’t feel right to him. He didn’t belong here, it seemed. Even with his expensive and glimmering clothing that had been made for this very occasion, he still felt out of place. He was nobility, not royalty — there was a difference. And no amount of beautifully jeweled and golden rings on each of his fingers, and a jeweled choker around his neck, with a matching gold chain acting as a headpiece that laid nearly overtop of his chocolate locks could change his mind. 

Lance was led towards what he could only assume was the throne room, keeping his head bowed down slightly as a sign of both respect and submission as the King and Queen stood before him, his father next to him to do the talking, as Omegas weren’t exactly allowed to speak unless directly order to, and even then, Lance wasn’t sure what to say when he would be directed to by the royals. That or he’d be unable to hold his tongue at how ridiculous this was, being given off to some Alpha as a prize when he really didn’t want it. Hell, he was supposed to be marrying someone he didn’t know! That was a little unfair — at least Lance thought so. Still, he remained silent, his father exchanging formalities and gratitudes towards the King and Queen, kissing each of their hands as a sign of loyalty and respect.

“It’s an honor to have been summoned here, your highness,” his father addressed towards the King, who gave a hearty chuckle that rumbled in his throat and reminded Lance of a grand grizzly bear.

“Please, sir, it should be me bowing to you for allowing your son to delivered, I cannot thank you enough. Omegas are hard to come by, especially ones as gorgeous as yours,” the King replied, and Lance felt a burning in his chest as he was addressed as a thing, as if he were some sort of leather purse that could only belong to the fabulously wealthy. “I believe my son and yours will get along splendidly.” 

“I do hope so.” 

Lance was ushered even closer, and after exchanging a glance with his father and receiving a small, curt nod, Lance looked towards their majesties.

“It is a pleasure to be in your presences, your highnesses,” Lance spoke softly, keeping his eyes closed and head down despite being allowed to speak. Just be nice, and maybe you’ll survive this, Lance. 

He just hoped the prince wouldn’t be an unbearable, rude, spoiled little rich boy, though that seemed it would be more likely than anything else.

Speaking of the prince, where the hell was he?

***

“An arranged marriage, huh?” 

Keith grunted as his sword collided with that of his mentor’s with an echoing clank, sweat beading down his forehead in the stuffy training room in the west wing hall. 

“Shiro, is this really the best time to be talking about this?” Keith groaned as he backed away, only to swing again, their swords clashing together again as the knight easily blocked his attack. 

“I think this is the perfect time to talk about it, actually,” Shiro retorted with a teasing laugh, swinging his weapon and knocking Keith back with the brute force of it, the prince’s blade falling from his hand and skidding across the floor. “Because it’s clearly bugging you, the Keith I know wouldn’t let himself be disarmed so easily.”

The tip of the blade pointing right at the juncture of his throat beneath his jaw, Keith accepted defeat with a growl and a annoyed roll of his eyes.

Needless to say, Keith wasn’t a big fan of this whole arranged marriage thing. He was an Alpha, wasn’t he? Shouldn’t he get to decide who he marries on his own, instead of having his parents chose someone for him — someone he had never met, and in less than a month’s time, would be married to and forced to spend the rest of his life with this person. 

Of course he had heard a few things about the Omega that he was being set up with. He was young, beautiful, and obedient, the perfect Omega. Yet, Keith had a feeling that was far from the truth, at least on the obedient thing — hardly any Omega was truly, completely obedient to their Alpha, whether that be their father or their mate. Hell, Keith’s mother was the most outspoken Omega he’d ever known, even if she had no power legally. Upon first glance, it wouldn’t be hard to assume that the Queen was the Alpha in the relationship with how she acted. And it wasn’t like his father scolded or reprimanded her, because she could dish it even better than she could take it, but it went against everything Keith had been taught growing up as an Alpha. With this Omega, Keith would have to show that he was the one in charge, not them. 

He already had zero tolerance for anything unorderly or insulting to himself, so he figured he’d have to act the same with his future mate. He didn’t have to like him, this was completely political. If anything, Keith would’ve rather ruled alone, it was easier that way, not having to depend on anyone else but himself. 

“It’s stupid! Is that what you wanted to hear?” Keith growled with an exasperated sigh as he walked to retrieve his weapon, shoving it back into its holster angrily, his teeth bared as stress coursed through his throbbing veins. 

“Yeah, pretty much,” Shiro shrugged, definitely way too calm about this for Keith’s liking. “You seriously didn’t see this coming?” 

“Of course I saw it coming, doesn’t mean I’m jumping for joy. This guy is definitely stuck up, I’m calling it now.”

“And you’re not?”

“Shiro, I love you, you’re like a brother to me, but I swear to god I’m gonna stab you one of these days.”

“What? Don’t act like it’s not true!” Shiro laughed, holding his hands up in innocence. “You’re the only child to the King and Queen, first in line to the throne, and the most desirable Alpha in the whole kingdom. There’s no way you’re not at least a _little_ stuck up.”

Keith couldn’t really argue with that, but that didn’t stop him from huffing and looking away as he folded his arms over his chest. 

“When’s he coming, anyway?” Keith asked tiredly, moving to pull the deep scarlet jacket cover his undershirt, the chest adorned with gold and jewels. 

“About ten minutes ago.”

“ _What_?” Keith hissed, looking towards the pendulum clock with wide eyes, a growl escaping his throat. “And you didn’t stop the lesson? I seriously hate you, my parents are gonna kill me,” Keith ranted and stormed out of the training room, servants immediately running up to wipe the prince’s sweat away from his face with handkerchiefs, only moving back when Keith got frustrated by their close proximity and swatting their hands away with an annoyed huff. 

“You’re late,” a voice said from the doorway to the throne room, Keith only connecting it to Coran, the annoying and way too chipper royal adviser to his father. 

“Yeah, thanks for the notice,” Keith hissed, pulling his hair from the tie it was up in and shaking his head to let the black mess fall back down onto his neck.

“How do I look?” Keith asked, quirking a brow towards the advisor, who hummed and scanned his eyes over the young prince’s appearance. 

“Like a prince.”

“Well I’d hope so,” Keith chided with a breathy chuckle, turning towards the door and rolling his neck, sighing at it cracked. “Well, here goes nothing.” 

With a firm push of the large doors with both hands, Keith strut into the throne room as if he were completely on time, catching his parents’ angered glares first and offering an unapologetic shrug as he walked up next to them.

“Ah, there you are, late as usual,” his father spoke, placing a hand on Keith’s shoulder and squeezing hard enough to silently tell Keith that he would get a talking to later, but he hardly cared. 

“I apologize for my tardiness. Shiro failed to inform me that our guests were here,” Keith explained with a slight smirk, because there was nothing else in the world that he cared about less than this. 

But then he looked forward, and the whole world stopped.

The man standing before him was ethereal, godlike in appearance, practically radiating elegance and purity as those bright blue eyes opened to lock with his own, Keith immediately finding himself lost in the waves of the ocean in those irises, and much like the current, Keith was finding himself pulled into the sea, drowning in his beauty.

Alright Keith, calm down, you don’t even know the guy’s name yet.

Keith walked forward and, taking one of the Omega’s hands in his own, leaned down to press a kiss onto the back of it, flicking his eyes up to look at the boy as a soft blush dusted his already rosy cheeks. 

“I’m Prince Keith, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” he hummed, standing up straight and admiring how he stood at a taller stature than the Omega, even if it was just a little over an inch. It still counted. “It would be a great honor to know your name.”

The boy laughed softly, and Keith could already tell that this Omega would be outspoken, just like his mother was, but suddenly that didn’t seem like such a bad thing. 

“Lance,” he said, his voice smooth and delicate and Keith could’ve melted at it. 

“Such a beautiful name,” Keith replied just as softly, almost a blown away whisper, not caring about the satisfied smirks from his parents digging into the back of his head, practically screaming I told you so, because they had known that Keith would like this one. Every other prince or princess Keith had met he had turned down, they were all snooty and snobby and waited on care with every beck and call and Keith couldn’t stand it, but this one? This one was different. Somehow. He didn’t know quite why yet. “Would you care for a tour around the castle? If you’re going to be living here, I’d think you’d like to know where everything is.”

“I agree. I’d love a tour,” Lance spoke, nodding his head softly and smiling.

Lance had been very opposed to this before, but as soon as that tall, muscular built man burst in and demanded attention, Lance couldn’t resist him. Was he really that pathetic? Latching onto the first attractive Alpha he met? Or was it because Keith was a prince? He figured only time could tell, his hand still within Keith’s grip as they linked arms, Lance giving one more bow to the King and Queen before turning away with the prince, Keith leading them out of the throne room.


	2. Chapter 2

If Lance thought that the simple entrance way to into the castle was beautiful, he certainly wasn’t prepared for the rest of it. Each hall seemed more decorated than the next, a thick red carpet on the floor muffling the clicking of his heels just slightly. This place, with as large as it was, was still somehow more abuzz than his manor, that was so much smaller than the castle that it might as well have been the barn in comparison. There were so many new smells and sights, but one stood out like a sore thumb, and it wasn’t himself for a change. 

A campfire, embers dancing and twirling up towards the night sky, a cool autumn breeze putting them out as they raced up towards the sky as if they were Icarus trying to reach the sun with a pair of wax wings. 

That’s what Keith smelled like. 

It was pleasant, much better than the sour smelling Alphas that would come to his estate to chat with his father and to look at Lance while licking their thin, chapped lips like lions creeping towards their prey. 

Still, Lance made sure to keep his guard up, there was still a chance that Keith could and would mess this up, and with what he had heard about the prince, it seemed more likely than not. It was more of a question of when than if.

“Down there is the library, but you’ll hardly use that, it’s really only for the Alphas in the castle. While I don’t entirely agree with that, that’s just how it is for right now.”

Ah, there it was. 

“That’s a shame,” Lance sighed softly. “It’s a good thing books aren’t really my taste.”

“Oh yeah?” Keith hummed, quirking a brow as he looked down at the Omega he was currently walking arm-in-arm with. “What is your taste then?” 

Lance smiled sweetly, like the innocent Omega he was, or acted like at least, gazing up into Keith’s eyes before speaking. 

“Flirting with Alphas that are more than an inch taller than me.” 

Okay, maybe that was a bit of a low blow, but Lance simply couldn’t help himself. Hey, if he wasn’t allowed to read books, he had to be allowed to do something! It was just playful banter, as far as Keith had to know.

The Alpha’s face was priceless, causing a bright laugh to bubble up from Lance’s throat, shaking his head softly.

“I’m teasing you, my prince,” he giggled, covering his mouth with his free hand to hide the amused grin that had worked its way into his features. “Don’t look so shocked.” 

Keith blinked a few times, processing what the hell just happened, because what the _hell_ just happened? When he suspected this Omega to be outspoken, he didn’t imagine this, not in the slightest. Maybe just the occasional “hey, I disagree with this!” not whatever this boy was trying to pull, because he was pulling something if that damned smile said anything, making him look way too beautiful for someone obviously so mischievous.

Hey, at least he’d keep Keith on his toes.

“Very funny, Lance, very funny,” Keith chided with a breathless chuckle, shaking his head and turning down the next hall. “If you weren’t going to be my bride, you’d make a fine jester.”

“You think so? I’ve been looking to branch out my options if this whole Queen thing doesn’t work out,” Lance joked right back, laughing softly. 

“Oh, I think this whole Queen thing will work out,” Keith hummed, squeezing Lance’s hand for a moment. “I’m starting to like you.”

Hm, Lance didn’t know how he felt about that one.

“Really? I’m flattered,” Lance said with the fluttering of his lashes, another mischievously innocent smile forming on his glossy lips. “May I ask why, your highness? I’m just the simple son of a Lord, whatever could be so special about me?” He proposed with an expecting tone, and maybe it was a hard question to be asking a little soon, but they were to be married in less than a month’s time. Things had to move a little fast for this to work.

Keith faltered for a moment, because what was he supposed to say to this? He had just learned Lance’s name only a half and hour ago, what could possibly be said? Still, Keith was confident enough in his charming abilities to save himself here. At least he hoped so.

“Well, I knew you were meant to be mine the moment I laid eyes on you,” he started, squeezing Lance’s delicate hands in his own, Lance able to feel the calloused skin of his fingers while Keith brushed his thumb over the contrastingly smooth skin on the Omega’s knuckles, though the dozens of golden rings made that a little difficult. The crimson color that grew on Lance’s cheeks kept him going, a confident smirk tugging at his mouth.

God, did Lance hate how his face flushed at that. He was not _his_. He wasn’t Keith’s, he wasn’t his father’s, he wasn’t anyone’s property, and yet, his heart skipped a beat at the sentiment. He was so conflicted.

“Did you now?” Lance grinned slightly, looking ahead of them while they walked, though Keith couldn’t bring himself to tear his eyes away from the specimen on his arm. How could he? Lance was much too alluring for his own good. 

“Oh yes, I did. I’m going to be honest, I wasn’t too thrilled about this whole arranged married thing at first, but that was before I saw you,” Keith admitted with a chuckle, and Lance arched a brow.

“Is that why you were late?” Lance wanted to do this just as little as Keith did, but at least he had put in the effort to get there on time and make a good impression.

“Well, uh, no, that’s no the reason,” Keith stammered, shaking his head. “I was training with one of my knights, and I didn’t know you were here until after you we’re already in the castle,” he explained, shrugging his shoulders.

“Mhm, likely story,” Lance teased with a playful roll of his eyes, turning his head away to hide the smile there. 

“It’s true!” Keith laughed, narrowing his eyes slightly at the Omega as he turned his head away.

“No, no, I _totally_ believe you.”

“I’m not very convinced, honestly.”

“No, I get it, as soon as a pretty face shows up you’re all on board, it’s fine.”

Keith was left speechless for what seemed like the thousandth time since he had met Lance, furrowing his brows slightly.

“Well… yeah. We just met, that’s all I know right now. But in my defense, it is a very pretty face.”

That got a small laugh out of the Omega, turning his head to look up at Keith again with a soft smile.

“Thank you.”

It was stupid — _Lance_ was stupid. What kind of stunt was he trying to pull back there? The thought squirmed in the back of his mind like an animal that just needed to be put out of their misery as he retreated back to his new room within the heart of the castle, pushing open the door and getting his first real look at the room since he had arrived in the castle. Of course this room wouldn’t be permanent, once they were married, he and Keith would be sharing a room, but god did Lance like the room he had been given now.

It was large — larger than his room back at the manor at least — with a king sized bed in the middle. The bed was cast underneath the shadow of a draping red cloth stroke overtop of the bed on the canopy, leaving Lance with a sense of privacy from the transparent fabric. There was an array of large pillows rested against one another and the beautifully carved oak headboard, a large white quilt covering the mattress and brushing against the floor. On either side of the bed were large windows, shrubbery decorating the windowsills on the outside of the castle, sunlight falling in through the smooth glass that was chilling to the touch. 

Letting the large door fall shut behind him, Lance rested his back against it, looking towards the ceiling with an unreadable expression, staying silent besides to ministrations of his breaths. Then, suddenly, with a frustrated growl, Lance ripped the golden chain from his head and threw it to the ground, the valuable metal skidding across the floor with a sort of fury. Without the weight on his skull anymore, the golden fabric fluttered to the floor and landed just before his feet.

“What is wrong with me?” Lance groaned, burying his face in his hands as he kept his whole body weight leaned against the door. 

There wasn’t an answer to that question that Lance could find within the confines of his mind, giving up his search in favor of slinking towards the bed and collapsing down onto it, his face buried against the pillows that were much softer than they looked, groaning softly into the silky fabric as his body finally got to relax for the first time that day. 

“Rough first day?”

Lance nearly shot off of the bed, yelping at the unfamiliar voice and searching frantically for the source of it. He didn’t have to search for long, the voice coming from a young woman standing right at his bedside, who looked visibly alarmed upon Lance’s reaction. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you,” she apologized with a wince, keeping her hands close to her chest.

“No, no,” Lance breathed out, shaking his head as the air steadily came back to his lungs. “It’s fine, really.”

Looking up at the woman again with a soft smile, Lance was able to take in her appearance without the fear that had recently fled his body. She was tall and fit, Lance able to see the outline of abs through the tight midsection of her dress. Her skin was dark, the sunlight seeping in making her cheekbones and the tip of his nose glisten, and kinked white curls were pulled up into a perfect bun, a light bandanna over her head and tied around the back of her skull, just above her neck. 

“May I ask what you’re doing in here?” Lance asked with a small laugh, shifting his body so that he was sitting over the edge, his feet just hitting the floor. 

“I was sent in here to clean for your arrival, and I was just finishing up when you came in and…” she trailed off, her eyes flicking down towards the golden chain discarded onto the floor, and Lance sighed.

“I’m sorry about that.”

“No, don’t be sorry milord, I understand,” she insisted, glancing back towards Lance before taking a seat on the mattress beside him. “If you don’t mind my asking, what caused that? Did the prince do something?”

Lance sighed again, shrugging his shoulders, and the servant spoke again before Lance could answer the question.

“If you don’t want to talk about it, I understand. But I swear to god I will kill him if he—“

“No, no, that won’t be necessary,” Lance laughed, shaking his head and waving his hand dismissively. “He didn’t do anything wrong, but I…” Lance paused, swallowing for a moment. “I think I was expecting him to, and when he didn’t I just… didn’t know how to handle it. Sorry, that makes absolutely no sense, I—“

“Milord, if I may, I think it makes perfect sense,” she interjected, smiling so sweetly that Lance couldn’t help but smile back. “His highness is a bit… difficult. He always has been, and I can assume that you had heard so,” she paused to look up at Lance, who gave a nod, before she continued. “But shouldn’t it be a good thing that he hasn’t done anything bad yet? I mean, and you can’t tell him I said this, but when it comes to feelings, the prince is an absolute fool.”

Lance laughed at that, nodding his head.

“Yes, I have heard that. But I just don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this,” he sighed, fumbling with the jeweled ring on his ring finger. “I think… I think I was trying to get something out of him, too. I insulted him _to his face_ ,” Lance groaned, everything he had said in the hallway coming back to him in all of its embarrassing glory. “What is wrong with me?”

“Nothing, milord, nothing at all.”

“Lance.”

“Pardon?”

“Call me Lance,” he hummed, offering the servant a slight smile. “My father is the Lord, not me. I own nothing, plus it makes me feel old and I _just_ came of age.”

The woman laughed and nodded, placing a hand on Lance’s shoulder. 

“Lance it is then,” she giggled, giving a curt nod of acknowledgement. 

Lance hummed and a warm smile grew on his lips, before he sighed again. 

“You really think there’s nothing wrong with me?”

“Lance, I understand why you’d feel like that,” she started with a gentle squeeze to Lance’s shoulder, which her hand still rested upon. “But think about it, this is completely new to you. The castle, these people, the prince. It’s completely understandable to be a little overwhelmed by it all.”

“But that doesn’t explain why I’m acting like this! Like… like I’m trying to sabotage myself, or something,” Lance groaned, resting his temples on his fingertips.

“I think that’s something for you to figure out yourself, Lance.”

Lance looked up and glanced towards the servant, meeting her kind smile with a slightly surprised expression. Lance had… never really had to do that before. Figuring things out for himself. It was threatening and scary, but an odd warm feeling spread throughout his chest.

“Okay.”

The servant opened her mouth to speak again before the door creaked open, a voice speaking before a face was seen.

“Allura, are you still in here—“ she started, pausing to look up towards the two sitting on the edge of the bed. “Oh my god, he’s here!” She squealed and bound towards the bed, jumping up right beside Lance on the opposite side of Allura, giggling.

The girl was tall and fair, two long blond pigtails tired back with a braid, a dress identical to the woman’s next to him hugging her thinner frame. She seemed much more energetic and excited than Allura seemed to, though the other woman gave a soft giggle and squeezed Lance’s should again. 

“That’s Romelle,” Allura hummed, the blonde woman beaming upon her introduction. “She’s been very excited for your arrival ever since we found out you were coming. It’s been a while since a new Omega has arrived here.”

Lance blinked, eyes widening at the words as they processed in his mind. The only other Omega he had ever known was his mother. Of course he knew the Queen, but meeting for a few minutes didn’t count, at least he didn’t count it personally. So this was new, but for the first time today, he considered it a good new, barely to contain the giddy smile that started to form. 

“It’s so nice to meet you,” he squealed, and it was obvious that Romelle reciprocated his excitement perfectly. I mean, when would Lance get the chance to meet someone like him again? Of course, Romelle wasn’t rich, and definitely want being set up with the prince of the kingdom in an arranged marriage that Lance wasn’t sure how he felt about anymore, but the similarities were there. You just had to squint. 

“We should be going,” Allura sighed and Romelle’s smile sank into a disappointed frown, but the woman continued still. “We’ve disturbed the boy long enough, Romelle. He’s got to be heading to the dining hall soon enough.”

Both Lance and Romelle sighed at that, albeit for separate reasons. Allura was right, Lance ought to be lead to supper soon, and that was terrifying. His first meal with his future family and the highest ranking officials in the entire country? Yeah, that was pretty intimidating. 

Romelle’s face scrunched up for a moment, as if deep in thought, before her eyes lit up with a sort of childlike wonder, and she looked towards Allura with a grin, which Lance couldn’t differentiate between it being mischievous, excited, or both. 

“Could we sneak him out _after_ dinner?” She proposed, and Lance already liked the sound of that. 

“Romelle,” Allura gaped, prepared to scold her, before the peppy blonde chirped up again.

“Just to the servants’ quarters! Just to introduce him to everyone?” She continued with a hint of apprehension, the end coming off as more of a question than anything else. And Allura sighed, and the furrowing of her brows signaled her falling deep into thought.

Lance, personally, loved the idea. The servants at his manor had never been like this before, and he had only met two of them so far. Hell, they would get reprimanded if they simply looked at Lance for a moment too long. They didn’t even try to speak to him outside of simple relaying of messages, but none dared to try more than that. It got kind of lonely, really. If his siblings hadn’t visited him and kept him company, Lance might’ve gone crazy by now. 

“Romelle, I don’t know—“ 

“Oh c’mon! It would be so easy! After he finishes eating we’ll act like we’re leading him towards his room! See, easy.”

Lance had to say, it was impressive how she had come up with that so easily, as if she had been planning it for a while. And he respected that.

“Well, Lance, would you be okay with that? That’s the most important thing here.”

Lance looked up at Allura again, smiling brightly and nodding. 

“That’s more than okay.”

Romelle squealed and looked up at Allura just as excitedly, and the woman nodded.

“Then it’s a plan.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took so long to get out!!! life has been so busy lately but I finally got it done. enjoy!!

Shortly afterwards, there was a knock at the door signaling for Lance to exit the room, and exchanging a wink with Romelle and Allura before he rose from the bed, only going to the door after he had picked up the cloth and golden chain from the floor, placing and adjusting them back onto his head.

“Your presence is required by the King,” a guard spoke, Lance holding the heavy door open just enough so that the two women couldn’t be seen from this man’s point of view. 

“Of course,” Lance nodded, carefully stepping out from the space the door allowed, letting it fall shut once he was completely out. “Lead the way.” 

Even if Keith had shown him around earlier, Lance still had no clue where everything was. The castle was so big, how could he? 

The guard turned and Lance followed at a distance, keeping his head respectfully bowed as he morphed back into his submissive nature, completely silent beside the clicking of his heels on the floor and the clanking of metal armor. There was a large pair of wooden double doors along one of the walls a little ways away from Lance’s temporary room, and the guard stopped in front of it, pushing the entrance open and keeping them open as Lance stepped inside, everyone’s eyes on him as he swallowed and made his way to his seat, a small little chair reserved for him right between Keith and his father at one head of the table, the King seated at the other, and the Queen seated beside him. Upon sitting down, Lance tried to ignore the various eyes on him, including guard within the room, or servants, and even his own father — but he couldn’t ignore one pair.

Bright and vibrant, such a deep purple that it made Lance shiver, were Keith’s eyes trained right on him, and upon looking up towards him, he was met with a fond smile and a slightly cocked head, as if they had been together for years and Keith had been expecting his arrival, though it had only been a few hours, around five at most.

Were they even together yet? You’ll have to forgive Lance, this is his first arranged marriage after all. 

“Is there something on my face?” Lance asked softly, his voice quite enough so that Keith could hear him, but no one else could. At least not clearly. They’d only be able to see the movement of his lips, but he wasn’t too concerned about that.

“No,” Keith answered, shaking his head softly while his smile only grew. “I just like looking at you.”

Oh god, how was Lance possibly going to survive this boy? His face was already flushed, his heart picking up substantially in his chest to the point of where Lance was seriously wondering if Keith could hear it, though he’d never ask.

“Oh,” Lance breathed out, laughing sheepishly and averting his gaze down towards one of the many utensils placed next to his empty plate. “I was worried for a second.”

Keith couldn’t explain how his heart swelled in his chest at the red color that grew on Lance’s features, knowing that they were there because of him, making it even sweeter. Before either of them could get the chance to say anything else, around a dozen people flooded into the room, each holding up a silver tray covered by a polished lid, placing each down onto the sleek tablecloth and removing those lids with ease and elegance, as if it were muscle memory at this point. Lance wouldn't be surprised if it was, honestly.

Lance’s nose was overwhelmed by the amount of amazing smells wafting into his nostrils as he inhaled once the domed lids were lifted, having to make a mental effort to not let himself drool by how good the food looked. Lance was used to eating good food as a member of the wealthy class, he had been gifted foods as well from other Alphas looking to court, though Lance had never accepted those. Not that his father would’ve allowed it, anyway. But that food didn’t even rank close to the food in front of him, and he hadn’t even had any of it yet. 

It took every fiber of his being to not immediately stuff his face full of exotically seasoned steak and lobster — something that Lance would admit he’d ever only had once while traveling to another manor closer to the ocean’s shore, which was a few days time away from the Kingdom in the heart of the country. Instead, he waited until every Alpha had started eating first before he even began to look at his, as was common place in his household back at the manor. Though, he couldn’t help but notice how the Queen has already finished half of her steak before Lance had even begun to cut his own. 

He was really beginning to like this woman. 

Lance took one bite and felt like he was melting, realizing that nothing he’d ever eaten before, and nothing he’d ever eat again would ever be as good as this. He needed to meet this chef — he needed to be their best friend. Now. 

The dinner began with small talk about random political issues between the Alphas at the table and, of course, Krolia, the women that Lance already admired more than he expected to. The young Omega, however, remained silent, simply listening and enjoying his food, moving to take a sip from the golden cup adorned with multicolored jewels around the outside before he had even been directly spoken to.

And what was said to him nearly made him spit out said water. 

“So, Lance, how many heirs are you hoping to make with my son?” 

Lance coughed and swallowed his water roughly, clearing his throat and looking up towards the Queen upon hearing her sudden question. 

They had just met that day and he was already being questioned about future children? This was really moving fast, wasn’t it?

“W-Well, I—“ Lance stammered, clearing his throat again while simultaneously coming up with an answer that would hopefully please everybody. “As many as he’s willing to have with me, your majesty.”

That was a good enough answer, right? Even if it wasn’t completely true.

Lance was a scrawny fellow, always had been. He was frail and delicate, the stereotypical image of an Omega. He wasn’t sure how many children his body could handle carrying, especially if Keith wanted a large family with him, regardless if they had a son first or not. And, in all honesty, it was all Keith’s decision, anyway. If Keith wanted a dozen kids, Lance would have to hold his tongue through all twelve pregnancies. 

Though, Keith seemed just as shocked as Lance did at the question, his face a red as deep as his vest as he sat at a loss for words. 

Of course they both knew what they would be doing in a month’s time, especially with the whole tradition of consummation upon being wedded, but that didn’t make it any less embarrassing or nerve racking for either of them. Not to mention a completely random dinner topic to just stumble onto from the original topic of taxes and laws. 

“Oh c’mon, don’t be so embarrassed,” Krolia teased, laughing at Keith more than she was at Lance. “Your father and I spoke about having you the first day we met, and we met on our own accord.” 

“Could we just focus on the marriage first?” Keith groaned, obviously wanting nothing more than to end this conversation before he recoiled in on himself from embarrassment. “Kids can be discussed another time.”

“Fine, if you say so,” Krolia succeeded, and Lance and Keith both let out a relieved sigh. 

After that, the conversation went back to the usual topic that Lance had expected — politics. It wasn’t much of a debate between the participants, since Lance’s family was so close to the Koganes that they had basically the same views on everything that they could possibly talk about. Still, Lance just listened, tuning in an out between bites of his food, and if you were very enthralled in the conversation, you wouldn’t even notice Lance’s presence. 

The dinner went by completely fine aside from that question, and it wasn’t even that bad of a thing in Lance’s mind, just surprising, but that wasn’t the point. Soon enough, Lance was thanking the King and Queen for an amazing meal, and was being escorted back to his room with by group of guards and the prince sauntering beside him. There was a comfortable silence as the two made their way towards Lance’s quarters, each occasionally sneaking glances at the other while they were looking away. They reached the large doors and paused, Lance gazing up at them before being ripped away by Keith’s voice.

“I hope you enjoyed your first day here,” he said, and Lance smiled softly. 

“I did.”

Keith smiled at that, which only made Lance’s cheeks ache more from the smile tugging at the corners of his lips, but it was worth it. 

“Goodnight, Lance,” Keith spoke, and Lance didn’t get a chance to return the favor before there were a pair of lips against the skin on his cheek.

They were there for a second, the briefest of moments, but to Lance, it felt like an eternity in all of the best ways. His lips were warm, or maybe that was just the red blush burning deep in Lance’s face, and surprisingly soft against his skin. His heart erupted in his chest, sparks flying and his breath stopping for the entire time Keith’s mouth was on his skin. Lance almost cried when they left his cheek, his slightly wide eyes looking towards Keith as the prince smiled and turned to walk back down the hallway. 

“Goodnight,” he breathed out, eyes lingering on Keith until he disappeared around the corner, and Lance was pulled from his trance. 

He looked back up towards the doors before pushing them open, stepping into his room and sighing happily, pressing his fingers against the skin that he could feel tingling where Keith’s lips had been. 

Lance didn’t have much time to daydream about Keith further, being pulled away from the door by arms that he would soon realize were Romelle’s as his brain came back down from the cloud nine he had previously been on. 

“Put these on,” she said, her voice barely containing her excitement as he shoved a pair of clothes into Lance’s hands. 

Upon further inspection, Lance realized that these were servants clothes, and he remembered all about their plan to sneak out.

“What happened to pretending to sneak me out of the dining hall?” Lance snickered while he neatly placed the clothes down over his bed, beginning to remove the various golden jewelry all over his body while he quirked a curious brow. 

“There’s no way that the guards would’ve let us escort you without them being around as well,” Allura explained, smirking slightly towards Romelle as she folded her arms across her chest. “I had to explain that to Romelle.”

Lance laughed as the blonde girl pouted and placed the final piece of jewelry on the bed, moving to get out of his dress next. He needed Allura’s assistance to do that, especially with the corset, and Lance sighed as he could finally breathe again. Next came the servants clothes, Lance slipping into those rather easily, considering they were just regular commoners clothes. 

“These are so plain,” Lance complained as he looked down at the shirt, the clothes obviously coming in only only or two sizes, judging by how big this was on him. 

“You get used to them,” Allura shrugged, before walking over towards Lance and guiding him towards the door by his shoulders. “Now come on, we should be going now. We need to do this before anyone realizes you’re gone.”

Lance was out in the hallway before he could even protest, not that he wanted to, following Allura and Romelle as they walked a way that Keith hadn’t taken him. It was nice, of course, but there wasn’t nearly as much gold or expensive decorations, and Lance could tell that they were getting closer towards the servants quarters. 

Eventually they stopped in front of a small door, having made it past several guards without so much as a side glance, so they were in the clear for now. Allura pushed the door open and Lance walked in with Romelle behind him, his eyes immediately scanning the sight in front of him, being met with dozens of eyes looking back at him.

“Everybody, this is Lance,” Allura introduced and Lance gave a meek wave. 

Suddenly, everyone seemed to recall who was supposed to arrive that day, and Lance could hear voices start to rise as the servants spoke to each other in hushed whispers. 

Before Lance could even react there was a small girl in front of him, short brown hair and bright brown eyes staring up at him with an obvious curiosity, as if someone like Lance had never been seen before. And really, in some ways, he hadn’t. Or at least, someone like him had never dressed up in servants clothes to hang out with the servants in the castle instead of living lavishly at all times. 

“This is him?” The girl asked, and Allura nodded. 

“That’s him,” she hummed, before looking up at Lance. “Lance, this is Pidge. Pidge, Lance.”

Lance smiled and nodded, while Pidge took in his appearance as if she had never seen before.

“But he’s so…” she trailed off, eyes scanning up and down Lance’s lean figure as he simply stood there, brows furrowed slightly. “Plain.”

“Hey—“

“She means that in the best way,” Allura chirped, shooting a glare at the girl when she thought Lance wasn’t looking. But he was.

“No I don—“ Allura slapped a hand over the girl’s mouth now, flashing a cheeky grin as she laughed. 

“Ignore her, she’s a teenager, you know how they are” Allura chuckled, glaring at Pidge again.

Lance couldn’t help but laugh at that, because it was partly true. Lance, as rich and as rare as he was, without all of his gold and jewels, he looked as plain as ever. Dark brown hair, tan skin, and blue eyes weren’t exactly revolutionary, or at least he didn’t think so. 

“I get it,” Lance shrugged, laughing softly as he rested his hands on the jutted bones of his hips. “I was a baby once too.”

Allura snickered at that while Pidge gaped, pointing a finger at Lance’s chest. 

“I am sixteen!”

“Oh yeah?” Lance hummed, quirking a cocky brow, and suddenly it felt like he was bickering with his siblings all over again. “Then how come you look twelve?” 

Even if Lance was only two years Pidge’s elder, he towered over her, and Lance wasn’t even close to being the tallest person in this castle. Still, Lance was a tease and bubbly at heart, so any chance to have any semblance of a normal relationship with someone, even a servant, was capitalized. 

And that jest worked, Pidge’s face a deep red and Lance knew it wasn’t from embarrassment. Lance had seen the same color on Veronica’s face when he used her brush to groom the dog (he was like five, sue him!).

“I swear to god I’d kill you right now if the prince wasn’t marrying you,” Pidge hissed, but Lance could tell it was told in a jocular manner. Again, Lance had seen this all before. Being the youngest sibling, it had been his job to torment them, after all. 

“You’d have to be able to reach me first.” 

Pidge gaped again and Lance couldn’t hold back his laughter as the girl tried to wiggle out of Allura’s grip, the older servant giggling as well.

“What? You can dish it but can’t take it?” Lance snickered, arching a brow.

“Why I oughta—“ 

“Alright, alright. That’s enough you two,” a voice spoke, and turning his head, Lance recognized the man as one of the servants that had been in the dining hall. 

It seemed that the servant recognized him as well, seeing as his eyes widened and he whipped his head towards Allura with a frantic expression while she was still holding Pidge back.

“Why would you bring him here?” He asked, grabbing Allura by the shoulders and she shrugged.

“He wanted to come.”

“Calm down Hunk,” Romelle giggled, slinking next to Allura with a cheeky grin. “No one even noticed him leave his room.” 

“But how are we going to get him back?” Hunk’s voice was exasperated tired, but panicked at the same time, and the women froze.

“We, uh… didn’t get that far,” Romelle winced, fumbling with her thumbs behind her back, wearing a wide, sheepish grin.

“You guys are going to get killed one day. Or I’m gonna die of stress.”

Hunk looked towards Lance, deep in thought and rubbing at his chin with his fingers. 

“We’ll probably need Coran’s help with this.”

“Coran?” Lance hummed, never hearing that name before in his life, and he felt kind of out of the loop right now.

“The royal advisor,” Pidge informed before Hunk got the chance to, the large man still weighing all of his options in his head. “He’s weird, but he’s nice.”

“Yeah, and he’s our only option, unless we want to alert Shiro or Acxa.” 

All three of the women seemed to wince at that, and Lance was only more confused. Someone really needed to sit him down and have a whole lesson on the inhabitants of this castle, or Lance would be confused forever.

“Who are they?”

“Not important,” all four said at once.

“I think that’s very important, actually!”

Lance was shushed after that by Romelle’s pointer finger smashing against his lips, and Lance groaned, his shoulders sinking as he folded his arms across his chest.

“I’ll go get Coran,” Pidge said, sighing as if she was being forced into it. 

“You’re right, they won’t possibly suspect a twelve year old,” Lance snickered, just going along with everything that was happening, even though he was the most confused he’d ever been in his life. 

“You’re on thin ice.”

With that, Pidge slinked out of the room, the door swinging open and closed a few times before it settled shut, and before any of them got the chance to say a word, Pidge was walking back in with a man that Lance recognized from seeing him around the royal family, assuming this man was Coran. From how Pidge described him, Lance imagined him as more of a wackjob, but he looked pretty normal, average height with a head of red hair and a bushy mustache to match. 

“Found him,” Pidge said as she moved back to her spot in between Lance and Allura, Coran’s eyes settling on Lance, who gave a sheepish smile and wave. 

“Before you say anything,” Hunk started. “This was not my idea.”

Lance recoiled slightly and expected the worst — a lashing, a stern talking to, maybe even alerting his father or god forbid his future in-laws — but instead, Coran laughed. A hearty, genuine laugh, as if he had been expecting this. Was Lance that predictable?

“Alright my boy,” Coran chuckled, approaching Lance with a smile. “Let’s get you back to your room.”

By this time, Lance had devolved back into his submissive state, simply nodding with a bowed head, falling completely silent. He couldn’t tell whether it was alarming or impressive how quickly he could switch between bright and bubbly, even sassy Lance, to the son of a Lord. With a slight nod to Hunk, Allura, and Romelle, Coran placed a hand on Lance’s back and guided him towards the door, Lance sighing softly once they emerged back out into the dim hallway, the only source of light being the occasional candle along the holders on the walls or the moonlight shining in through the stained glass, filling the halls with dreamlike colors as they walked. 

“You don’t have to sneak out of your room, you know.”

Lance looked up at Coran with slightly furrowed brows.

“I… don’t? But I thought—“

“No one’s holding you hostage in your room. The Queen was insistent on it. Not that I liked the idea either,” Coran laughed, and Lance loosened up a bit, finding himself smiling. “And I won’t be telling Keith about this either, I was a young chap once myself, believe it or not.”

Lance snickered and nodded, smiling softly as they walked past guards without so much as a second glance. Coran was the royal advisor, why would anyone suspect him of hiding something?

“What about my father?” Lance asked, his nerves settling back in as he pictured the angered rant his father would go on if he discovered his son had snuck out to interact with commoners, and be a normal person for even a short amount of time. 

“My lips are sealed, my boy.”

Lance let out the breath he hadn’t known he’d been holding, a smile coming back to his face as they turned the corner and neared his bedroom door. They arrived in no time, Coran teaching to turn the door handle for him, Lance giving a small nod as he stepped inside. 

“Thank you.”

“Sleep well, Lance. You’ve got a busy day ahead of you.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wowie two chapters in two days who am i

It was indeed a busy day, just as Coran said.

Lance wasn’t sure how fast he had fallen asleep, and he wasn’t exactly able to remember changing into the silk pajamas laid out for him, but the first thing he remembered that morning was being surrounded by maids he had never met before, all tugging him out of bed with an array of encouragements that Lance couldn’t quite process with his tired mind. 

He groggily sat up, more egged on by the tanking at his limbs and he slowly looked around, his vision still blurry from sleep and for a moment he forgot that he wasn’t home anymore. 

“Get up child,” One of the maids, an older woman, spoke, pulling Lance up gently by one of his arms so that he was sitting over the edge of the bed. “We’ve quite a lot to do before you’re ready.”

“Ready for what?” Lance yawned, balling one of his hands into a fist and rubbing it against his eyes.

“Well your father is leaving shortly, sweetie.”

Lance froze at that, the grogginess in his body escaping like smoke from a candle as he locked eyes with this woman. 

“He’s leaving?”

“Of course, he can’t stay here forever. You’ll see them all on your wedding day.”

Lance had to quiet down and nod, but his mind was swirling. He had never gone more than a day or so without his father, how was he supposed to survive as long as a month without his family at all? This was going to be the most difficult month of Lance’s life.

Lance was guided up from the bed and stripped of his silk clothing, another dress being carried in, and Lance sighed in relief at the lack of a trail. 

While a few of the maids worked to get Lance into the dress while the others fixed his bed and took his pajamas to get washed. Once the corset was on, Lance stepped into the velvet and silk, allowing the garment to be pulled up his body and buttoned closed. 

Unlike what he was used to, this dress was a deep red, the staple color of the royal family, and Lance already felt strange. Red wasn’t his color, never had been. Blue was. Still, Lance did a pretty good job at hiding his discomfort, as the maids didn’t raise any questions, smoothing out of fabrics to make sure they were covering his body just perfectly. Right around where his belly button was underneath the dress there was a slit in the fabric, a strip of gold fabric with matching crimson floral designs starting at the point in the slit and widening as it lowered down to his feet. There was a strip of gold fabric around his biceps and around the neck of the dress, which was low enough to show off his defined collar bones in the early sunlight beaming in through his bedroom windows. Another addition of gold trim was pleased right around the cuffs of the sleeves, which dangled down to the floor of Lance kept his arms down at his sides. A pair of red shoes were slipped onto Lance’s feet, and once he was dressed, he was dragged over towards a wooden vanity along one of the walls, a large mirror resting on top. The maids that had been working on dressing him before moved to comb and groom his hair, while the other few that had taken his clothes came back in and cleaned his mouth before spritzing him with a floral smelling perfume, even though Lance thought he smelled pretty good. As soon as his hair was presentable and smooth, a golden band, matching the trim throughout the dress, was placed right atop of his skull.

He was a Kogane now, figuratively, by how he was dressed. There was so much red Lance had never had to wear before, and emotions were running rampant with nerves and sadness over the upcoming departure of his father, but he would be lying if he said there wasn’t a strange sense of pride that came with soon being independent. As independent as he could be in a situation like this, at least. It was one less person he’d have to worry about angering or disobeying.

Lance was escorted from the vanity towards the door and then out into the hallway where the entourage of maids were replaced by guards whose metal clanking with each step hadn’t settled comfortably in Lance’s senses yet. The halls were the same as yesterday, if not a bit emptier, but Lance just assumed that they were all busy doing other things, or they were all still asleep. It was still a bit early, even if it was later than Lance would normally be woken up by the servants back at the manner. As they neared the entrance of the castle, Lance could hear the distant conversations, and able to pick out the voice of his father among the other’s, and he picked up his pace a bit. 

“Lance,” his father grinned when he rounded the corner. “Nice of you to join us.”

Lance laughed softly and walked up at a brisk pace, opening his arms to meet his father’s expecting expression with a tight hug. His father’s arms wrapped around him and squeezed him firmly, patting his back softly.

“I’m gonna miss you,” Lance mumbled, not nearly loud enough for anyone but his face to hear. 

“As will I.” His father pulled his head away from his son’s and looked down at him, smiling softly before leaning forward and kissing the top of his head. “You’re going to be great.”

Lance smiled brightly and breathed out a soft laugh, nodding. 

“I’ll try.”

Once their private sentiments were exchanged, Lance moved back to stand along with the royal family before the King and Queen walked forward to talk to Lance's father as well, but he didn’t dare eavesdrop. 

It wasn’t like he got the chance to anyway.

“Red looks good on you.”

Lance lifted his bowed head to look up towards the voice, Keith having slinked up next to him.

“Late again I see,” Lance snickered, smirking up at the male. “What’s your excuse this time?”

The slightly messiness of his hair made Lance suspect he woke up late, but there was no way Keith would admit that. 

“Not important,” Keith deflected, causing Lance to laugh softly. “Let’s just talk about how beautiful you look.”

“I like that idea.”

“Hm, if that’s the case,” Keith hummed, smirking slightly before wrapping an arm over Lance’s shoulders and leaning down some to speak more into his ear while their parents spoke in their own little bubble. “How about we ditch this place after your father leaves and I show you around the kingdom? While telling you how beautiful you are the whole time, of course.”

Lance laughed softly, turning his head away as a soft color that almost matched his dress burned at his cheeks. 

“So how many guards will be accompanying us?” Lance asked, quirking a brow and awaiting some crazy amount. Lance was never able to go anywhere without the assistance of at least a dozen guards, and if he was in his own home, it was usually maids since Lance had communicated his discontent for the constant presence of guards to his father. Not that replacing them with servants really helped, but he wasn’t going to complain twice. Complaining once was bad enough already. 

“None,” Keith said, much to Lance’s surprise, and Lance actually laughed.

Keith furrowed his brows slightly while Lance brought a hand up to politely cover his mouth with the back of his hand, muffling his laughter.

“Very funny,” he snickered, looking up towards Keith, expecting to see the other wearing an equally amused expression, only to be met with those furrowed brows and a slightly pursed lip. “That… that was a joke, right?”

“No.”

Lance’s eyes early bulged out of their sockets and he sputtered, clearing his throat before speaking again.

“Did your parents approve of this?” 

Lance was not about to leave the castle with Keith, without any guards, if the King and Queen weren’t for it. That would be the worst impression, and Keith could easily work it out to be Lance’s fault. 

“Yes, my parents approved,” Keith nodded with a mixture of a laugh and an exasperated sigh. “I was planning to bring guards first, but my mother said no, as long as I bring my sword, we’ll be fine.” Lance could live with that. “I was thinking a nice, long tour on horseback, just the two of us. What do you think of that?”

Lance could tell that that was just a subtle way of getting Lance to hold on tightly to Keith, and Lance would be lying to himself if he thought that wouldn’t work, but he didn’t say anything. Keith had to think he was in charge at least a little bit, after all.

“That sounds wonderful,” he hummed, nodding softly. And it wasn’t a lie, he had known Keith for a total of a day now, but he was excited. Excited to spend time with him. Excited to laugh with him. Excited to learn more about him. Excited to fall in love with him. And this time, Lance wasn’t going to do anything to sabotage himself. He wanted this to work, he really did, because they were getting married either way. He’d prefer to enjoy the company of his husband, after all.

Keith smiled, opening his mouth to say something else, but was interrupted before he got that chance. 

“Keith, stop flirting for two seconds and go say goodbye to Lance’s father,” Krolia scolded when she turned around and Keith sighed, pulling his arm off of Lance’s shoulders reluctantly before walking forward to stand before Lance’s father, and Lance just prayed that the standard “hurt my kid and I’ll hurt you” talk didn’t go down. 

“It was a pleasure to meet you sir,” Keith said, meeting Lance’s father’s hand that was expectantly outstretched for a handshake. “I promise your son is in good hands.”

“I don’t doubt you for a second, my prince,” Lance’s father replied with a smile before they each lowered their hands. “But you do know what’ll happen if my son is harmed, don’t you?”

Dammit.

“I’m well aware, sir,” Keith answered with a curt laugh and nod. “But is sure I’d harm myself before I’d ever hurt Lance.”

Lance paused at that, looking up from his embarrassed glance towards a specific slate of marble on the floor to gaze towards Keith. His heart fluttered in his chest and he found himself with a fond smile, because that might’ve been the nicest thing anyone had ever said to him. Or, technically, about him, but Lance wasn’t too focused on the minor details. 

“Good answer,” Lance’s father chuckled, nodding approvingly towards Keith, who looked pretty proud of himself, at least from the back where Lance could see.

With another smile towards Lance, his father turned to enter his carriage, the door being closed for him. A snap of the reins caused the horses drawing it to start off down the path back towards the manner, and Lance gave a small wave, even if he knew his father couldn’t see him now. 

For the first time in his life, Lance was on his own, no family to turn to. He couldn’t help that loneliness and nervousness that churned in his stomach, how his palms got a bit clammy at just the thought of being truly alone. Of course he had Allura and Romelle and the rest of the servants, along with Keith and the King and Queen, but that just wasn’t the same. He hoped it would be one day, of course, but today was not that day. 

Lance didn’t have much to dwell over his fallen emotions when Keith turned towards him and, bowing slightly, extended an arm as a silent request for Lance to rest his hand against it. And Lance was happy to do so. The prince stood upright with Lance’s hand against his forearm and began to lead him past the garden and towards the horse’s stables. The sunlight was warm on Lance’s tan complexion, his cheekbones glimmering softly as a result of the natural dewiness from both his genetics and just as a bonus of his constant pampering. 

Lance only allowed his eyes to wander once they reached the actual stables, the clicking of hooves and constant whinnying of the horses and the overwhelming smell of hay and manure wafting into Lance’s nose, and he couldn’t help how he rocoiled slightly. Thankfully Keith didn’t notice, and Lance quickly got used to it as they walked deeper past the horses, each creature turning its head to follow the steps that Lance took to the end. 

“Here he is,” Keith grinned, and Lance looked up at the horse they stopped in front of. It was a large horse, muscular and proudly wearing the royal crest — a lion —in pure gold across its chest. Its fur was a brilliant mixture of brown and strawberry brown, and its main looked an incredibly shiny black, and he had the brightest yellow eyes Lance had ever seen. The horse didn’t look real, in all honesty — it looked straight out of a fairy tail.

“What’s his name?” Lance asked, hesitantly holding out his hand for the stallion to smell, so the creature wouldn’t be apprehensive when a random stranger hoisted up onto him. 

“Red.” 

Lance couldn’t help but snicker at that, raising a brow.

“Really? Red? You named your horse red?”

“Shut up,” Keith laughed, an embarrassed pink flushing on his cheeks that made Lance smile. “I’ve had him since I was like three, I thought that was a good name.”

Lance grinned at the thought of a baby sized Keith with such a large creature — of course not so large at the time, but that's besides the point — and it made a soft warmth spread across his chest. Of course, Lance hadn’t been able to be around such creatures for a majority of his adolescence, since his parents were afraid he could fall off or get stepped on, but now that he was on his own, he could theoretically ride a horse whenever he wanted, right? Hopefully.

“No, I think it’s cute,” Lance said, shaking his head softly. 

“I think you’re cute.”

It was Lance’s turn to blush and laugh, playfully shoving Keith’s shoulder away as the other gave a shit-eating smirk. 

“Shut up.” 

“Well it’s true,” Keith chuckled and shrugged as he moved to unlock the stable gate. Once the lock was undone, Red pushed out of the stable, pushing Keith aside and whinnying in a way that Lance couldn’t help but recognize as a laugh. “He’s a brat.”

“He takes after his owner.”

Keith rolled his eyes and laughed, leading him and Lance towards the exit of the stables, where Red was waiting expectantly for the two of them. Keith was the first to climb onto the stallion, leaning over some and extending his hand out for Lance to take, which he did, yelping softly at the sudden tug that Lance wasn’t expecting. With two hands on his hips, Keith placed helped Lance onto the back of the horse, smiling as his delicate arms wrapped around Keith’s chest. Keith may or may not have flexed a bit, just to show off his muscles to the younger boy, but he would never admit to it.

Keith got a tight grip on the reins, turning his head back to smirk at Lance, who held on tighter as a result.

“Hold on tight.”


	5. Chapter 5

Before Lance even got the chance to ask Keith to not go so fast, or at least to brace himself, Keith kicked the side of the horse and the creature was blinding down the path from the stables to the gate, and Lance caught a scream in his throat, because it didn’t seem possible for a horse to move this fast. But then again, what did Lance know about horses? 

Keith was leaving forward slightly to keep his center of gravity, and he was doing a damn good job of it, and Lance was just along for the ride, squeezing onto Keith as if his life depended on it. It was nearly enough to restrain Keith’s ability to breath, but he was fine. That would end badly for all parties involved if Lance made Keith pass out. 

“Do you have to go so fast?” Lance asked, having to raise his voice slightly so that Keith could hear him.

“Fast is the only speed Red knows,” Keith replied and Lance could practically hear the smirk on Keith’s features, and if this wasn’t the only person keeping him from falling off of this damn horse, Lance would have smacked him upside the head.

Keith kept up this speed until they reached the gates, and with a tank of the reins, Red trotted to a stop as if he hadn’t just been going light speed down this path, dust flying back from the force of his hooves against the cobblestones. The gate was opened by the servants working there and Red started off again, a reasonable gallop this time around, and Lance was able to catch his breath.

“What happened to only knowing fast?” Lance panted, and Keith chuckled. 

“I lied.”

“I hate you.”

Keith laughed again at that, a laugh that made a heat rise to Lance’s cheeks, and glanced back at Lance for a moment.

“Come on, don’t be like that,” he snickered, and Lance couldn’t help a laugh of his own.

“Nope, it’s official, I’m being like that,” Lance hummed, resting his chin against Keith’s shoulder to watch as the innards of the kingdom became visible over the hill’s dip. 

“That’s a shame,” Keith shrugged, “I was looking forward to spending the day with you and stuff, but if you’re gonna be that way, I guess I’m just gonna have to turn arou—“

“Do that and I actually will hate you.”

Keith laughed again, drawing a soft smile from Lance, but he wasn’t exactly joking. When would he ever get the chance to be this free while outside again? Probably never, so he wasn’t going to squander this chance, and there was no way he was going to let anyone else ruin it either, even if he knew Keith was just teasing him.

“Noted,” the Alpha nodded, and Lance held onto him a little tighter as a small reward, gently nuzzling his head against the side of Keith’s neck, and boy did Keith like that. He felt a bit of both pride and some primal urge to hold Lance close to his body and never let him go, but he suppressed that last one. He could let Lance have fun for a day, and then he could hold him and never let go.

That seemed like a good plan.

“So, where would you like to go first?” Keith asked, glancing back at Lance to get his answer, but Lance didn’t know where to start.

“I… um…” Lance trailed off, glancing around as they got even closer to the village, which was bustling with life and energy, small children running through the streets while their parents shopped or stood behind the counters of the shops wafting with the scent of fresh bread and pastries, and there was just so much to choose from. 

“Would you prefer I choose?” Keith asked, able to pick up on the indecisiveness wafting from the Omega holding onto him, and Lance nodded. “Have you really never been here before?”

“Yeah!” Lance said, laughing softly. “I’ve never been able to go anywhere without guards before, not even in my own home!” Lance explained with a mixture of a laugh and an annoyed sigh as he breathed out.

“Well, if that’s the case,” Keith nodded, turning his head to look back at Lance, their noses nearly brushing together. “Then I’m going to take you to see everything. Even past your manor.”

Lance could imagine it, getting to see everything he’d missed or hadn’t even known about in the last eighteen years of his life with Keith right at his side, with him at every place worth seeing, which to Lance, was everything. Lance smiled, tilting his head a bit to press his lips against Keith’s cheek. 

“I’d like that.”

Keith, as strong and as scary as he was, was utterly, completely, entirely whipped by this boy, and he’d be lying if he said he was against it. It felt good to be able to smile like this, he hadn’t felt like this around anyone before. Not even Shiro, who was practically his older brother even though they had no blood relation as far as he knew. Lance just… flicked a switch inside of him, and even after knowing him for such a short amount of time, he made him want to be better. 

“That’s good,” Keith chuckled, leading the horse into town, tugging at the reins to get Red to stop, before turning to Lance with a grin. “Cause it starts now.”

Lance was then held up by the hips as Keith scooped him into his arms with ease, giggling as the male lowered him to the ground once he was on solid ground. There were already eyes on each of them, and Lance could understand why. It was the prince and the prince’s arranged bride — of course people were going to be interested. There was a hint of apprehension in the air, since, again, Keith wasn’t exactly the most popular guy amongst the general population because of his not-so-great reputation, but Lance did his best to dissolve the stagnant tension with a warm smile, children giggling and running to tell their parents about it. Lance looked back towards Keith to see the man extending a hand for him, smiling as he placed his hand into the open palm. Lowering their hands to their sides, fingers intertwined and gave a gentle squeeze, and Keith was leading Lance towards one of the shops, Red trailing behind a few feet. 

“Where are we going?” Lance asked, trying to keep his eyes on Keith as he spoke, even though everything around him was practically begging to be stared at. 

“You’ll see,” Keith hummed with a grin, pulling Lance into a quaint little parlor. 

There was an immediate smell of fresh bread and pastries that wafted towards Lance upon entry, and it was absolutely lovely, white lace covering the wooden counter as a tablecloth, while handwoven wicker baskets sat full with the things causing that amazing smell. In the far corner of the room was a wood-fired oven, and from the smell coming from it, there must’ve been another batch of baked goods coming soon.

“Well if it isn’t Keith,” a woman spoke from behind the counter. She was old, short, with a kind face, tan wrinkled skin, and shiny grey hair, laughing as she looked up at the Prince, who definitely seemed to recognize her with that smile. “I haven’t seen you since you were just a young lad. How’s life treating you?”

Keith laughed softly, giving a quick shrug of the shoulders. 

“Hello madam Balmera,” Keith greeted with a fond smile, and for some reason, that name sounded familiar to Lance. “I apologize for not visiting sooner. You know how busy things get,” he mused, and the woman nodded. 

“I’ve been around long enough to know, yes.”

“Things have been well, thank you for asking. My mother still loves when your food ends up on the table. How have things been over here?”

“Busy, but that’s never changed,” The woman cackled, and at that point, another woman walked in, much younger than the other, with short brown hair and a similar tan complexion, who grinned as soon as she saw Keith. 

“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Mr. Kogane himself,” she teased with a chipper and excited tone. “And you brought someone else!” She exclaimed, directing her attention at Lance, and he nearly looked around to see if she was talking about someone else. Thankfully he didn’t — that would’ve been embarrassing, and Lance would cry if he ruined the first normal goddamn conversation he had with someone he didn’t know while out.

“Well, Shay, this is—“

“Lance,” the Omega interjected with an excited fervor, extending his hand over the counter to shake Shay’s hand, who happily accepted the offer. “It’s nice to meet you.”

“Oh, I like him, he’s a keeper,” Shay’s grandmother snickered, Lance giving a small giggle. 

“Sorry,” Lance winced, a sheepish giggle causing a slightly bounce of his shoulders. “I’m just very excited.”

“Don’t be sorry, dear,” Shay soothed, smiling sweetly as she leaned against the counter. “You’re just adorable. How did you end up with a guy like Keith?” Lance had to stifle a laugh, which came out as more of short than anything, while Keith gaped with pulled brows.

“It was arranged,” Lance explained through chuckles, and Shay only laughed more.

“Well, that would definitely explain it.”

“Hey—“

“Love, if I wanted to leave, I’d be in a different country already,” Lance laughed, smiling up at the woman with rosy cheeks. 

“I’ll take your word for it,” Shay chided with an amused grin, shaking her head gently. “Alright, Lance, since I’m assuming it’s your first time here, choose anything you want. It’s on the house,” the girl offered with a smile, making a gesture towards the dozens of loaves and pastries displayed around the room. 

Keith was left silent as he watched their interaction, and he didn’t even notice he had been smiling until Lance’s eyes on him were seeking approval, and Keith gave a small bow of his head as an answer to their silent exchange. 

“Are you sure?” Lance asked as one final form of permission as he turned back towards Shay and her grandmother, who each nodded as well.

“We insist,” the old woman added with an equally wide smile, her wrinkles pulling up from years of giving Keith the same expression. “Anything.”

Lance nodded himself and with a soft hum, he let his eyes scan around the room, examining each naked good. He took his time, wanting his choice to be perfect, since he wasn’t sure when another opportunity like this would arise again. Within the baskets were large loaves with flaky crusts and soft innards, golden brown croissants, long baguettes, and baked pastries that were filled with creams, chocolates, or mashed fruits from the blooming garden’s autumn harvest that Lance could see parts of from the open window on the back wall. Eventually, his eyes circled back to that chocolate stuffed pastry, and Lance couldn’t just not get it when it smelled that good. 

So, with a confident finger and a bright smile, Lance pointed towards the baked good, looking towards the women that ran the shop. 

“That one, please,” he hummed politely, and Shay went to grab it for him. 

“Here you go, Lance,” Shay said as she handed the treat over, Lance uttering a short word of thanks as he took it from her, and then Shay moved to grab something else. “And for Keith, a strawberry pastry,” she giggled, holding the flaky dessert over the counter. “Don’t think I forgot.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to,” Keith said, thanking them with a small bow of his head. “Thank you. I hope to see you both again soon.”

“I hope so too,” Shay’s grandmother nodded. “And bring Lance with you next time as well, I like his voice more,” she laughed, and Keith cracked a smile while giving the woman a playful eye roll. And Lance couldn’t figure out for the life of him where Keith’s negative reputation had come from.

“Will do.”

With another quick round of thanks and goodbyes, Keith led Lance back out of the shop, Red waiting patiently outside of the tiny home. 

“They seem nice,” Lance hummed, relieving am agreeing nod from the Alpha, who had favored taking a bite of the pastry as soon as they stepped outside. Lance, instead, kept the treat within the cloth covering for now, hoping he’d get the chance to eat it in a more scenic spot later on, even if it smelled like heaven.

“Yeah,” Keith said once he swallowed. “Shiro used to bring me down here while I was growing up and he was training, and this was where we always went, and I’d get the same thing every time,” Keith explained, flashing a grin as he waved the pastry in his hand a bit. “But then Shiro’s training ended and I got older, and more responsible, so we stopped coming.”

Lance nodded, smiling softly at the thought of a content little Keith, humming happily while trotting around and eating his little strawberry dessert. The Omega took Keith’s hand and gave it a soft squeeze, looking fondly into his eyes. 

“So, where to next?”


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just incase anyone was wondering, yes i am going to continue this story, don’t worry

With a growing grin and a squeeze of Lance’s hand, Keith pulled Lance down the road again, Lance laughing at the sudden enthusiasm as following him at his side. The two walked together, hand-in-hand, sharing smiles and laughs as the chatted about trivial subjects — the weather, the constant bounding of children, and the scattering of critters as they rushed to prepare for the upcoming winter in a few months time. It was nice, for both of them, to get their minds off of the big picture and to enjoy to minuscule details. 

They walked for several minutes, and Lance had no real destination in mind, simply following Keith with a smile, and he was happy to be in his company. It was only a little bit later that Lance noticed a small structure peeking up over the hill, and he looked up at Keith with pulled brows. 

“What’s that?” Lance asked with a small gesture, and Keith grinned. 

“The fountain. I figured, since you’ve never been out before, you’d like to see it.” 

Lance looked back towards the approaching fountain, his eyes widening slightly the closer they got, able to see the sparkling of crystals and marble from the sunlight and the rushing water. Once they were close enough for Lance to see it entirely, his breath caught in his throat.

The fountain was huge, four pillars high with each pool getting smaller than the last. The water falling down between each level was as clear as sky on a hot summer’s day, and if it weren’t for the bustling life around them, Lance was sure he’d be unable to see it at all. Each marble structure was adorned with shimmering rubies, the sunlight hitting it in such a way that made Lance had to squint a bit to see the fountain clearly. Inside the bottom layer, where all the water ran down to, were what Lance could only assume to be hundreds of golden coins, all sparkling and glittering just as brightly as the jewels on the outside. 

“Keith, I…” Lance trailed off, feeling the wind being knocked from him as he stood in awe, his irises twinkling from the reflection. “It’s beautiful.”

“I knew you’d like it,” Keith hummed, leading Lance to the edge of the fountain, where they both sat down to gaze down at the water. At least, Lance was looking down at the water. Keith was focused on other things. “You know, once we’re married, I could get some sapphires added to the fountain as well. Since Blue seems to be your color.”

Lance looked at Keith upon hearing that, his lips pulling upwards at the corners into a small smile. 

“You’d do that for me?” 

“Of course. Once we’re married, this won’t be just my kingdom anymore,” Keith explained as he gently ran his thumb over Lance’s knuckles. “Adding your favorite color to a fountain is the least I can do, and it’s certainly not the only thing.” 

Lance fell silent, wanting to say something in return, but his mind was drawing a blank, nothing but silence coming out as his mouth opened. And, for the first time since they’d met, Lance only wanted to do one thing.

He wanted to kiss Keith.

It popped up as a tiny thought at first, but as the two shared a silent gaze, understanding and warm, Keith’s brows pulling down a bit into a fond look, every fiber of Lance’s being was craving Keith’s lips on his own, practically screeching at him to just lean forward and do it already. 

So he did.

Well, that’s what he tried to do, at least. 

Instead, when Lance leaned forward, eyes slowly starting to flutter closed, it seemed that Keith got the message, his eyes flickering down to Lance’s lip as they both leaned closer, and that’s when Lance lost his balance. 

The edge of the fountain wasn’t exactly the best thing to sit on, so with a small movement, Lance was slipping backwards, yelping and throwing his arms up in an attempt to balance himself, but there was no way he could save himself now. It was embarrassing and not at all graceful, the way Lance sank into the cold water of the fountain, and Keith brought a hand up to cover his mouth as he snickered when Lance came back up, his face burning a deep red.

“Oh my god,” Keith said through a cackle, holding out one of his hands for the soaked Omega. “Are you okay?”

“I hate you,” Lance groaned, reaching up to take Keith’s hand for the other to help him up. Only, when Keith went to lift him, Lance pulled him down instead, causing the Prince to fall into the water as well, and it was Lance’s turn to laugh now. 

Keith came back up, looking like an angry cat from the way his hair stuck to his face, which only made Lance laugh more, a pain forming in his abdomen as it became harder to breath. 

“Sorry, I couldn’t help myself,” Lance apologized between amused breaths, wiping some water away from his eye, or maybe those were tears. 

“I hate you,” Keith said, mimicking Lance’s words from earlier, though his expression told Lance the complete opposite. They were both smiling and laughing, dripping wet from their clothes and hair, cheeks red from embarrassment, but it was nice. Lance might’ve not gotten the kiss he wanted, but he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t happy. 

Keith was the first to stand up, remembering that they were currently sitting in the public fountain and people had been staring for a while, actually helping Lance up this time, the two still giggling like excited little kids. Keith pulled two coins from his pocket, placing one in Lance’s palm. 

“Make a wish, then toss the coin in.”

Lance looked down at the golden coin in his hand, closing his eyes to think for a moment. It wasn’t hard for Lance to come up with something, opening his eyes with a smile before tossing the coin into the fountain, the water rippling as it sank to the bottom. 

Keith was the next one to throw the coin in, it landing down right next to Lance’s, and then the Prince’s hand with intertwining with his own once more. And, wet and cold, the two started off further into the village, happy. 

The sun had dried their hair off fast enough, Lance’s drying into small little curls, while Keith’s seemed fluffier than normal, but it would take a little longer for their clothes to dry, but that was fine. It was totally worth it. 

“This’ll be the last place for today,” Keith hummed, and Lance frowned a bit. “But, it’s further out, and I really want you to see it.” 

That brought Lance’s smiled back, Keith freezing in his tracks to allow Red to trot up beside them before he and Lance got on. A simple snap of the reins had Red sprinting towards the edge of the village, Lance holding onto Keith tightly as they entered the forest, disappearing from the public eye behind the cover of the trees and shrubbery within. Lance didn’t have a clue where they were going, because if he had never been out in the village, there was no way his father would ever allow him to enter the forest. 

“We’ll have to walk from here,” Keith said as he slowed Red down to a halt, getting off himself before helping Lance down. “The path gets pretty narrow.”

Lance scratched Red’s chin, smiling as the horse whinnied softly. 

“Good boy,” Lance hummed, and Keith cracked a small smile. 

“Stay here,” Keith ordered, and Red huffed, but followed Keith's command, staying put while the Prince lead Lance deeper into the forest, warning him to watch his step in case of rocks or twigs that could cause him to fall on the narrow pathway. 

“What could possibly be this far out?” Lance asked with a breathless laugh, holding his dress up a bit with one hand as he stepped over a twig for what seemed like the hundredth time. “You’re not taking me out here to kill me, right? Cause that’d just be cruel.”

Keith snorted, shaking his head and giving Lance’s hand a gentle squeeze. “No, I’m not gonna kill you,” he chuckled, looking back at Lance to smile. “It’s only a little bit longer now, I promise it’s worth it.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever walked this far in my life.”

Keith laughed again, and Lance hated how that simple sound could make his heart pound so much. 

“What, do you want me to carry you?” Keith teased with smirk, and Lance answered without missing a beat. 

“Yup,” he nodded, popping the ‘p’ just for further emphasis.

“Wha—“ Keith stammered, stopping so abruptly that Lance walked into him with a surprised grunt. “For real?”

If Lance didn’t know any better, he would’ve noticed how Keith sounded a bit excited at that idea. 

“I mean, I was joking, but it y— woah,” Lance’s breath hitched as Keith swiftly lifted Lance up into his arms, holding the boy bridal style with ease, and Lance would’ve been impressed if he wasn’t caught so off guard. “Alright, I guess this is happening.”

“You caused this, remember that,” Keith snickered, smiling proudly as he resumed walking with Lance now in his arms. Lance felt that familiar heat on his cheeks, embarrassed further from how easily Keith could embarrass him, sneaking glances at the satisfied Alpha as he walked. 

Lance could tell that they were getting closer as the nature got more serine around them, Keith finally placing Lance back down gently on his feet and taking his hand again as they approached two trees, curved to lean against each other, with a cover of dangling vines shielding what lay ahead. 

“We’re here,” Keith said as he held the vines back to allow Lance to enter, the Omega doing so and immediately freezing. 

“Keith…”

Lance had no words. 

Behind the vines was a small, hidden oasis, covered almost completely from the blinding sun, only speckles of light peeking in through the trees, creating the illusion of stars sparkling on the forest floor, like an upside down paradise. The grass was a brilliant green, dotted with various flowers that thrived despite the minimal sunshine, surrounding a small pond where a waterfall ran into, and Lance could see several fish with varied splotches of orange, black, and white swimming around underneath the surface. There was a hammock tied up between two trees, swaying slightly from the autumn breeze, clearly put there by another person, and Lance could faintly see three letters carved into one of the trees it was tied to. Lance turned to look at Keith, his eyes sparkling in awe.

“This place is incredible.”

“I know, right?” Keith nodded with a small laugh, taking Lance’s hand to walk in further. “I used to come here a lot as a kid, still do. It’s like my own little slice of heaven,” Keith hummed. 

“I can’t believe you get to see this whenever you want,” Lance breathed out, his eyes scanning everything to commit this to memory — he certainly didn’t want to forget a sight like this anytime soon. 

“Well, I’m technically not allowed out anytime I want, but I’ve never really listened to my parents,” Keith chuckled. “I was kind of a reckless kid. I was always looking for a fight, and while I can’t truthfully say that I’ve completely matured, I’d like to think that I’ve grown out of it. But, whenever I’d get really mad, Shiro would bring me out here and we’d sit and talk until I relaxed again. Then, he got really busy with his training, so I’d sneak out here by myself.”

Lance nodded as Keith spoke, looking up at him now with a soft smile. 

“Yeah, I wish I could say I wasn’t biased when I first found out we were to be married, but I’d definitely heard some things about you,” Lance explained gently as Keith sat them both down in the middle of the field, their fingers still laced together, since neither of them really wanted to pull their hand away. “Not so great things.”

Keith sighed, looking toward the waterfall off to the side with a small crown on his lips. 

“But,” Lance interjected, smiling brightly, “they were wrong! You’re a really nice guy,” he hummed.

“They’re not wrong.”

“What?”

Keith sighed, glancing at Lance for a moment before looking away at nothing in particular. 

“I’ve done some… pretty bad things. I’ve yelled at people, hurt them, intimidated them. Hell, my old teacher left because he insulted and I hit him so hard I blinded him in one eye,” Keith explained with an exasperated sigh, tilting his head to look up at the cover of trees. “I deserve the reputation I have. I have no one but myself to blame.”

Keith wasn’t exactly sure where this was coming from, but he couldn’t seem to stop himself. He just felt so comfortable around Lance, like he could tell him anything without judgement. And Keith had a lot to say, full of all of these pent up feelings of regret and remorse, some of which he’d never been able to shared before, not even to Shiro. 

“When I first found out that we were getting married, I was planning on establishing my dominance straight out of the gate. To make you understand that you were mine, and nobody else’s. To make you obedient,” Keith admitted, continuing before Lance could react to it. “But, then I actually met you, and I… I was floored. You looked so stunning, and the way you spoke to me made me realize that I liked hearing you speak your mind. I liked the way you could tease me and laugh around me, like I wasn’t the Prince, or some scary Alpha, but like I was just Keith.” 

Keith looked down at Lance, who remained silent, his cheeks burning a deep red, the only things he could hear being Keith’s voice and the sound of his own heartbeat. 

“What I’m trying to say is,” Keith started again, clearing his throat as his own cheeks began to burn. “Even after such a short time together, you make me want to be a better person. I want to make you happy here, I want you to fall in love with me because you actually love me, not because we’re forced to be married. And I want to fall in love with you,” Keith said, smiling softly. “Though it’s not like you’re making that very hard to do.”

Lance, for what seemed like the millionth time today alone, was speechless, his heart pounding so hard that he was almost positive that Keith would be able to hear it. 

“Keith, I…” he trailed off, his surprised expression softening into one of fondness, a warmth spreading across his chest. “Even if you did some bad things before, that doesn’t matter to me. Let people talk, they’ll never know the real you,” Lance hummed, squeezing Keith’s hand reassuringly. “I’m excited to fall in love with you.”

Keith smiled at that, a bright, warm, genuine smile that made Lance’s heart flutter. The Alpha leaned a little closer, and Lance followed suit, a hand moving up to gently coax Lance’s chin up a bit more, Keith’s thumb brushing against his soft bottom lip. 

“Can…” Keith trailed off, swallowing a lump in his throat as he switched between looking at Lance’s blue eyes and his lips. “Can I kiss you?”

Lance was breathless, his heart pounding in his ears now, hearing those four words that he craved. 

“Yes,” he whispered, and Keith tilted his head slightly, his hand moving to cup Lance’s cheek as the gap between them closed. 

The kiss started off slow, their lips barely touching, their breath mixing tentatively as the rest of the world melted around them. After a moment, Keith grew a bit more confident, pressing into the kiss a little more so that their was no doubt of the contact now, Keith’s brows furrowing slightly, nothing else mattering to him besides Lance, and the same was true for the Omega. 

One kiss turned to two, and two to three, and this process continued until they had lost track of how many times it had happened, lost in their own little world in Keith couldn’t call his safe haven anymore. That title had gone to something else now.

Or, rather, someone else.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TWO CHAPTERS IN ONE DAYS LETS GET THIS BREAD BOYS—

“Today was amazing,” Lance hummed as they brought Red back to the stables upon their return to the castle, his hand intertwined with Keith’s as they basked in this blissful aura between them. 

“I’m glad you think so,” Keith nodded, opening the gate to Red’s personal stable, the horse walking inside before Keith closed and locked it again. “Cause I feel the same.” 

Keith turned to Lance completely now, taking both of his hands into his own and gazing down at him with nothing but love and affection, the simple gaze causing Lance’s heart to soar. 

“I must be the luckiest Alpha in the world,” he whispered, just loud enough for Lance to hear, a small giggle leaving the rosy-cheeked boy. 

“Oh, stop it,” he laughed, turning his head away with a bright smile.

“How can I?” Keith gushed, only leaning down closer with a grin. “You’re just so amazing, it feels wrong not to let you know that.”

Lance rolled his eyes and looked up at Keith again with a warm expression, biting his lip softly. “Well, I’m waiting…” Lance trailed off, grinning and batting his lashes. 

“If I must,” Keith laughed, leaning down to press a kiss against Lance’s lips, a small hum leaving the shorter male as he melted into it. 

“Ahem.”

A clearing of a throat caused the kiss to break, both males turning to look towards the noise, a frustrated groan escaping Keith’s throat. 

“What is it?” He asked, the servant stepping in a bit further, Lance immediately recognizing that head of white hair. 

“I’m sorry to interrupt, my prince, but General Shirogane is requesting your presence in the throne room,” Allura explained, and Keith groaned again.

“I’m sorry, I have to go,” he sighed, turning back towards Lance and gently squeezing his hands. “But I’ll see you a dinner?”

Lance nodded, grinning. “I’ll be there.”

With another quick peck, Keith let go of Lance’s hands and turned to walk out of the barn, starting back off towards the throne room. Once the Prince was out of earshot, Allura immediately rushed towards Lance, taking his hands and squealing. 

“Oh my god,” she giggled, both of them grinning brightly. “You have to tell me everything.”

Lance sighed happily, lolling his head to the side with a dreamy smile. 

“It was so amazing, Allura. Keith’s wonderful,” he cooed, laughing gently. “He took me out into the kingdom, and showed me so many amazing things. We fell into a fountain, and then he took me to some secluded place in the forest, and—“ Lance cut himself off with another dreamy sigh, giggling at just the thought of the kisses they shared in the woods, his eyes closed now. “I think I’m falling for him.”

Well, that wasn’t exactly true. Lance knew for a fact that he was falling for Keith.

“Lance, that’s incredible!” Allura exclaimed, letting go of Lance’s hands as they started to make their way out of the stables and back towards the castle, Lance telling his friend every detail of their day with a bright smile and sparkling eyes. 

***

“Hey, Shiro, you wanted to see me?” Keith spoke as he pushed open the door to the throne room, being met with the sight of not only Shiro, but his right hand as well, Acxa, both staring at him with less than pleased expressions. “What’s going on?”

Keith walked in and let the door close behind him, folding his arms across his chest.

“Apparently you took Lance out of the castle without any guards,” Shiro said, tapping his foot against the ground. “Care to explain yourself?”

Keith groaned, rolling his eyes. “He’d never been out on his own before! Plus, mom said I didn’t need to bring any!”

“No, she said you didn’t need to bring _many_ , not none at all. Do you know what could’ve happened out there? What if someone tried to attack you, or what if someone tried to attack Lance?”

Keith growled at the mention of Lance being in any kind of danger, clenching his fists as his arms fell to his sides.

“Lance was fine, I’m perfectly capable of protecting him myself. What’s all of my training for if not being trusted to protect one person?” Keith shot back, huffing an angered breath from his nose. 

“Keith, I know that you’re strong, but—“

“No!” Keith interjected, baring his teeth. “Lance doesn’t need anyone else protecting him. I’m perfectly capable of doing so myself. Don’t expect me to be nice if any guards try to follow us in the future.” With that, Keith turned around and stomped out of the throne room, walking down the hall towards the training deck — the one place Keith could punch something without getting in trouble.

“Well, that went well,” Shiro sighed, Acxa giving a small shake of her head.

“I think that Omega’s a bad influence on him,” she expressed, frowning with a stern look in her eyes. “He’s never spoke to you like that before.” 

“I’ll speak with him again later,” Shiro sighed, frowning as he looked at the door. “We just need to give him time to cool down.” 

***

“And then when I leaned in for a kiss at the fountain, I ended up losing my balance, and I fell in!” Lance exclaimed, sitting in the middle of the servants quarters while Pidge, Hunk, Allura, and Romelle sat around him, listening intently. “I pulled Keith in too once he reached down to help me.”

“You two are so gross,” Pidge groaned, though the other three sat with twinkles in their eyes.

“I didn’t know Keith had that side of him,” Romelle cooed, giggling. “It sounds magical!”

“It was,” Lance nodded with a sigh, that dreamy, far off look still in his eyes. “He’s such a romantic. Can you believe that?”

Before anyone could answer, there was a knock on the door, their eyes all falling onto it. 

“Lance?” Called out Coran, Lance quirking his brow and standing up to open the door a bit. 

“What is it, Coran?” Lance asked, able to see another person behind the royal advisor. A tall woman, with short hair, and Lance couldn’t tell whether it was black or a dark navy. She had pale skin and dark lipstick, wearing a stern expression to match her guard attire. “Who’s that?”

“Acxa,” the woman spoke before Coran could, her hands resting firmly on her hips as she looked down at the boy, and if she was attempting to intimidate him, it was certainly working. “I’d like to speak to you for a moment.”

“Uh…” Lance trailed off, swallowing thickly and glancing towards Coran, who gave a small nod. “Alright, I guess.” He stepped out of the room and let the door close behind him.

“Should we follow them?” Hunk chimed up, and all three women nodded. 

“Walk with me,” Acxa said, and if Lance was reading the situation currently, it wasn’t a request. So Lance listened, walking beside Acxa while fumbling with his thumbs behind him, his eyes trained on the floor.

“I um… what seems to be the problem, Acxa?” Lance asked, looking up at the woman with a sheepish smile.

“You.”

Lance paused, his eyes widening for a moment in shock. Did… did he hear her right? 

“I—… I’m sorry?”

“You’re distracting the prince from his duties,” Acxa continued, not even sparing Lance a second glance. “This wedding is nothing more than a political move, do not think that you have the right to pull the prince away from what really matters because you’re marrying him.” Acxa looked down at Lance now, her dark eyes narrowed towards him. “You are nothing more than an accessory. Don’t forget that.”

Lance was speechless, completely halting in his stride to stare up the woman, expecting her to turn around and start laughing, to play it off as a joke, to do anything other than stop as well and look back at him with cold eyes. 

“What… what is your _problem_?” Lance furrowed his brows, his eyes flicking up and down Acxa’s build. “What have I ever done to you?”

“I thought I made myself clear,” Acxa said, and Lance could’ve sworn there was a hint of anger, as if nothing before had actually angered her. “The prince does not need such a distraction when he is preparing to become king. I suggest you learn your place before you jeopardize the kingdom’s future.”

Lance stayed standing there as Acxa then turned to walk away, the metal clanking of her armor getting farther and farther away until Lance couldn’t hear it, and even then, he stayed put. 

“Can you believe the nerve of that woman?” Lance heard a woman’s voice say from behind him, then shushing, and Lance turned to see Hunk, Allura, and Pidge all shushing an angered Romelle behind him, attempting to hide around the corner. 

Lance sighed, letting his hands relax a bit from the fists they had been balled up into. 

“How much did you guys hear of that?”

“Uh,” Pidge spoke up, poking her head out from behind the corner. “All of it?” 

“I swear to god as soon as I get my hands on that woman—“ Romelle hissed, already rolling up her sleeves as if she was ready for a brawl, only for Hunk to hold her back with a frantic expression. 

“Woah woah woah, no Romelle, no fighting,” Hunk pleaded nervously, the feisty blonde trying to escape his grasp to follow the guard down the hallway. 

“I’m so sorry she said that to you, Lance,” Allura apologized as she walked up to him, gently chewing on her lower lip. “Nothing she said was true. Acxa’s always been a little… difficult. She doesn’t really understand others’ feelings, so don’t take it too personally. She didn’t mean it like that.”

Lance hummed with a hint uncertainty, looking off toward where Acxa had walked off. A sigh escaped his lips and he started to walk off as well.

“Lance? Are you alright?” Allura asked, her brows furrowed slightly concern, and Lance turned to flash them a smile. 

“I’m fine!” He nodded. “Just tired. I’m gonna go take a short nap before dinner,” Lance said before he turned away again, barely able to hold himself back long enough to make it into his room. Once he did, closing the door loudly as he slammed his back against it, Lance couldn’t contain the tears that had burned at his eyes, trying to blink them away but only increasing the number that feel until Lance could hardly see, sinking down onto ground to pull his knees to his chest, his tears soaking into the velvet fabric of his dress.

“Pull yourself together Lance,” he spoke through ragged breaths, eventually managing to pick himself up off of the floor, only to collapse down onto his bed a few moments later, sprawled out on his stomach while hugging and letting his tears soak into a pillow instead. He was shocked that a few harsh words could get him to break down like this, curling up around the pillow with a heaving chest as his eyes burned, tears still pouring from them despite his best efforts to wipe them away. 

Then there was knock on the door. 

“Lance?” A voice called out, and Lance immediately shot up, eyes blown wide.

“Keith,” he whispered, biting his lip.

This was bad, this was really, really bad. He couldn’t let Keith know he was crying like this! Nope, no way, never in a million years!

“Are you okay?” Keith called out again with another small knock on the door, and Lance realized he had two options — lie, or not answer. Staying silent would only worry Keith further, so Lance decided to ignore that option.

“I’m alright!” He called out, clearing his throat in a desperate attempt to hide how he’d been crying in his voice. “Everything is just A-Okay! Yup, nothing amiss over here, nothing at all!” He rambled with a sheepish laugh, and Lance slapped a hand to his forehead.

He just had to keep talking, didn’t he?

“Okay…” Keith trailed off, and Lance could practically see the disbelief on his face. “Is it alright if I come in?”

“No!” Lance yelled quickly, before backtracking just as fast, nearly fumbling over his tongue. “I mean, give me a minute!”

Lance practically leapt out of bed as he scrambled to the vanity, quickly trying to make his eyes less puffy and red so that Keith couldn’t tell that he had just been sobbing. It was no use though, his eyes weren’t cooperating with him and that alone made Lance want to start crying _again_ —

“Is everything okay in there?”

So Keith had heard the ruckus as well. Great. 

“Uh, yeah! Just hold on a little longer!” It was at this point that Lance scrambled for an excuse, grabbing the first book he found and tossing it onto his bed before running to the door. He took a deep breath, smoothing his dress a bit before calmly opening the door and smiling up at Keith. “Come in!”

Keith seemed to relax, a smile tugging at his lips. “Hey, Lance, I—“ Keith paused, eyes widening slightly as he noticed Lance’s disheveled appearance and unmistakable red eyes, the hastily wiped away tear tracks on his cheeks, and something in Keith’s heart twinged at the sight of it. “Were you crying?” 

Well. That was fast. 

Lance laughed, waving his hand dismissively and turning his head away. “What? Me? Crying? Nope, never.”

Keith wasn’t buying it. Not in the slightest. Was it too late to use that book excuse?

Two hands cupped either side of Lance’s face, forcing the shorter boy to look up at Keith with wide eyes. Keith bit his lips gently as he gazed down at Lance, each feature affected by those tears causing his heart to crack. He never wanted Lance to be sad, he realized. Ever. 

“Don’t lie to me, Lance,” Keith sighed, using the pads of his thumbs to wipe the remnants of the tears on his skin. “You can talk to me, you know. Just like how we opened up to each other in the woods. That doesn’t have to stay there. I’m here for you, no matter where we are.”

“Keith…” Lance breathed out, his expression softening into a smile and he even laughed, albeit softly, hardly more than a whisper. “You’re gonna make me cry again.”

Keith huffed out a smile and closed the door before leading Lance to the bed, sitting him down on the edge before plopping down himself. “Now, what’s bothering you?”

Lance hesitated for a moment. It wasn’t like he could just explain what Acxa had said to him, abuse then Keith would be angry with her, and that would most definitely not end well for Lance. So, he sighed, fumbling his his thumbs in his lap, eyes fixated on them.

“Do you… am I just… an accessory?” Lance asked, hating the way it sounded out loud, and a silence fell between them. 

“What?” 

The way Keith’s voice cracked saying that one simple word was enough to get Lance tearing up, his breath beginning to tremble quite a bit as he continued.

“I-I mean… am I really just a distraction? What is the point of me being here, if…” Lance trailed off again, sighing dejectedly. “If all I’m doing is hurting you.”

The silence that followed felt like an eternity, and Lance nearly jumped out of his skin when Keith grabbed his face again, pressing his lips against Lance’s before the other could even have a chance to say another word. It wasn’t hard for Lance to melt into the kiss, his hands moving from his lap to gently frame Keith’s cheeks, his delicate fingers resting against the juncture of Keith’s face and jaw. 

“I don’t know why you’d think that, and honestly, I don’t need to know why, because I can tell you that none of it is true,” Keith spoke gently, looking down into the other’s eyes with a soft smile. “I care about you. A lot, actually. More than both you and I know. So don’t ever think for even a second that I don’t want you around, or that I don’t need you around. Cause I need you, Lance. I know we’ve only been engaged for a few days now, but I can tell you that you’ve already changed my life. You’re not an accessory, you’re not a distraction, and you’re certainly not hurting me.” 

Lance stayed silent for a moment, unable to tear his eyes away from Keith’s even if he wanted to.

“...Do you really mean that?”

Keith smiled and guided one of Lance’s hands down to his chest, pressing his palm against his heart, and Lance could feel the heavy pounding that must have matched his own.

“With all of my heart.”

Lance smiled and leaned up to kiss Keith again, the world melting away as it seemed to do every time he was with him. He pulled away a moment later, leaning over to rest his head against the crook of Keith’s neck, and the prince wasted no time in wrapping an arm around the boy, resting his head atop his. 

“Could we just… skip dinner tonight? I want to stay like this.”

Keith smiled upon Lance’s request, giving a small nod, both closing their eyes to bask in each other’s presence.

Tonight wouldn’t be enough.

Lance wanted to stay like this forever.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wonder who did it

Keith spent more time in Lance’s room after that.

They’d talk, exchange and steal kisses, or simply enjoy each other’s company. And Lance was happy like this. The wedding was creeping ever closer with every passing day, the arrangements beginning to get underway, with only two weeks left until the ceremony. 

Lance had almost forgotten Acxa’s words in the hallway that day. Almost. Despite all of Keith’s actions that had convinced him otherwise over the last week or so, there was still that nagging thought in the back of his mind, telling him that everything was a lie, that he was a nuisance, a distraction, nothing but a deterrent to the kingdom and its wellbeing. 

The stress of planning a wedding certainly didn’t help with that. 

Every two seconds he and Keith were ripped apart to be questioned on what color napkin was best, or what kind of soup would be the best appetizer at the reception. 

And it was terrible.

Lance didn’t know one thing about planning a wedding, despite having dreamt being married his whole life. It involved way more stress than Lance expected or wanted, and god Lance just wanted a break. 

Keith seemed to pick up on that, though, needing a break for himself as well. 

“Keith!” Lance called out upon seeing the Alpha across the hallway, turning the corner to catch up with him, the prince having stopped what he was doing to turn around and smile. “Are you busy?”

“Well, it’d be a surprise if I wasn’t busy right now,” Keith laughed. “But for you? I’ll drop it.”

Lance grinned at that, reaching to take Keith’s hands in his own. “Well, I was thinking we could take a break? Maybe a small walk through the garden, just to get some fresh air?” Lance suggested with a sheepish smile, keeping his shoulders shrugged up.

“That sounds—“

“Your highness, if I may,” interjected a voice, and Lance nearly groaned. Upon looking to the side and up, Lance was met with an all too familiar face. 

“Acxa,” Keith hummed in acknowledgement, “Have you met Lance?”

The two exchanged a tense glance, nodding.

“We’ve met,” Lance said in a less than excited tone, and luckily Keith didn’t pick up on it.

“As I was saying,” Acxa continued, glaring at Lance for a moment before looking towards Keith. “The wedding is in only a few weeks. Wouldn’t it be smarter to stay here and keep up with the planning?”

Ugh, this again. If she called Lance a distraction one more time Lance was gonna—

“The castle will survive without my presence for an hour,” Keith chuckled. “I think it’ll be fine.”

“But, your maje—“

“Let them go,” pipped up another voice, and, upon further inspection, Lance came to the conclusion that it was Shiro’s voice as the guard approached them. “They deserve a break, and if they’re staying on castle grounds—“ Shiro paused there, flashing Keith a knowing look and the Alpha scoffed, “—then it should be fine.”

Keith grinned and started to walk away, hand in hand with Lance, but before they could completely turn the corner, Lance turned his head to stick his tongue out at Acxa, as a silent victory.

“I do not like that boy,” Acxa grumbled, hunched just a bit with a glare and arms folded tightly across her chest.

“Hey, he makes Keith happy,” Shiro shrugged. “Now come on, we have other things to attend to.”

Shiro turned to walk off, but Acxa stayed for another moment, her glare lingering where Lance had been before she finally turned around as well, following Shiro with a slight drag of her feet. 

***

“I’ll never get over how gorgeous this is,” Lance sighed as he leaned against Keith’s shoulder, arms resting in the other’s lap while Keith wrapped his arm over Lance’s shoulders.

The garden was large, completely taken over by different colored flowers, a small fountain in the middle of the field where the horses could drink from when they were freed to graze the field to their heart’s content. Along the gates that were blocking the castle from the rest of the world were sprouting vines, entangled in the wide bars, with large rose bushes trailing along the base, the scarlet flowers at full bloom.

“Neither will I,” Keith hummed, but it wasn’t the view he was looking at, his head angled to gaze down at the boy in his arms. 

Lance could sense the eyes on him, and he looked up, a soft color growing on his cheeks as their eyes met. 

“Stop looking at me like that,” Lance squealed, giving Keith’s shoulder a playful shove. “You’re making me blush!”

Keith laughed, letting the shove cause him to fall back onto his elbows. He cocked his head a bit, smirking before he yanked Lance down as well, the boy yelping as he landed on Keith’s chest. 

“But I like seeing you all red and embarrassed,” Keith snickered, stealing a quick kiss. “It’s cute.”

Lance only felt himself grow redder at that, unable to squirm away to hide it from the grasp Keith had with his arms wrapped around Lance’s waist, keeping Lance leaning against his broad chest with a proud smile. 

“Do you pride yourself on embarrassing me?” Lance asked with a brow raised, Keith pretending to ponder over the question for a moment before grinning. 

“Yeah, pretty much.”

Lance scoffed and shoved Keith’s face away now, his head tilting up as the Alpha laughed, only squeezing Lance’s waist tighter as a result, flashing Lance a flirty grin. Lance rolled his eyes at the gesture, raising his hands to gently cup Keith’s cheeks, leaning down slowly, their lips getting closer and closer until—

Something hit him.

It certainly wasn’t physical, sending a shiver up Lance’s spine and making his legs weak. He was trembling now, and he had no idea why, and it appeared that Keith didn’t either, of how his face changed was any indication.

“Lance?” He asked, sitting up a bit with the boy still in his arms. “Are you okay?” 

Despite his feeling, Lance nodded, moving a little bit away from Keith, and even though his instincts were screaming at him, Keith let him move.

“Yeah,” Lance nodded, swallowing a lump that had formed in his throat. “I’m fine. Just got a little lightheaded is all,” he insisted, and Keith frowned.

“We should get you back to your room,” Keith said quietly as he moved to stand up, taking Lance’s hands in his own to lift him onto his feet at well, but that lasted all of about two seconds, Lance’s knees buckling and causing him to fall again, the only thing keeping him from hitting the ground being Keith’s quick reflexes.

“Yeah, I think that’s a good idea.”

Keith couldn’t help the small laugh he breathed out as he lifted Lance into his arms, carrying the boy bridal style as he hurried back into the castle, quickly bringing Lance to his room, but not without glaring, or even sometimes growling at the guards and servants that stared as they passed. Keith wasn’t sure why though. 

“Just relax,” Keith soothed as he lowered Lance down onto his bed, offering a smile. “I’ll get a doctor to come in and check you out, just to make sure everything is okay,” he assured, pressing a gentle kiss to Lance’s temple before he moved to leave the room, offering Lance a quick smile, and then he was out the door.

***

“A _what_?”

“A stress heat.”

Keith started at the doctor with a mix of shock and confusion, blinking a few times as the three words echoed in his head. 

“It’ll pass over on its own in a few days, it didn’t look severe at all from the examination, though he his extremely weak right now.”

That alone made Keith want to push past the woman, to lock himself away and Lance’s room and to hold him until this was over. Or, from how the scent that was escaping underneath the locked door was making Keith's head spin, some… other things.

“I have to get in there,” Keith dismissed quickly, taking one step forward before a hand was grabbing his arm.

“Absolutely not,” Shiro said, pulling Keith back a bit, and Keith hardly noticed the growl that rumbled from his own throat. “Do you know what your parents would do to you if you got in there?”

“Lance needs me!”

“No, he needs some privacy,” Shiro shot back without missing a beat, beginning to drag Keith away by the collar of his shirt like a cat carrying her kitten by the nape of its neck. “You are, under no circumstances, to never go into Lance’s room until his heat has passed, so you understand?” 

It was a naïve thought really, thinking that a few stern words would keep Keith from disobeying the rules, but it had to be said. 

“I understand,” Keith huffed, and there was absolutely zero sincerity in his voice.

Shiro was going to have to keep him busy, then.

Meanwhile, Lance was writhing in a pool of his own sweat, involuntary tears, a scent that was making the windows fog, and that damn sticky substance that dribbled down his legs every time this godforsaken week rolled around the corner. 

It might’ve been the stress that was making him feel worse than he usually did, or maybe it was the fact that it had come so suddenly that he didn’t have a chance to nest, but either way, this seemed like Lance’s personal hell. 

It didn’t help that, with all the time they had been spending together, Keith’s scent was all over everything in his room. The pillows, the sheets, the blankets, the clothes that Lance had discarded basically as soon as Keith left the room — nothing was spared. And it was both heavenly and torturous. The scent was comforting to him.

At least, until Lance remembered that there was a person attached to that scent, and then the torture started all over again. 

***

Whoever thought that Lance being bedridden would keep Keith focused on his work could not have been more wrong about anything in their life.

In fact, Keith was even _less_ productive than he’d been with Lance at his side, though that could easily be attributed to the pheromones affecting the prince that kept drawing him back to that forbidden door, even touching it once before the guards posted at the doorway pushed him away and Shiro managed to drag him off as far away as possible once more while Keith was pouting like a kicked puppy.

Of course, Keith had half enough of a brain to know that there was absolutely no way that he could be in there, that that was probably the worst thing that Keith could do, but as soon as even a hint of that sweet scent again, everything else would fly out of the window, and all he could think of was Lance. 

His eyes, which were the brightest blue Keith had ever seen, his lips, shiny and soft, his bright smiles and the way his hair curled a bit when he first woke up. How his dresses swayed over the thin frame that Keith could feel when he gripped Lance’s waist. The laughter that bubbles from his throat that could make even the grouchiest person smile wide.

 _Lance_.

The only person allowed in Lance’s room was the doctor, to occasionally bring him water and food so that he wouldn’t be as exhausted as he always was during his heat, and for a brief moment, Keith could hear noises from inside whenever the door opened.

And those noises certainly didn’t help keep Keith focused.

“This is just sad,” Acxa hissed, standing beside Shiro as she watched Keith be dragged away from the door for the billionth time in the past few days. “There’s got to be a way to stop this.”

Shiro sighed, letting another guard drag Keith away, crossing his arms while Keith put up a fight.

“I doubt it,” he said. “Keith can’t really fight his instincts.” 

Acxa gave an acknowledging hum, her eyes locking onto the closed door that Keith was fighting so hard to get into.

“We’ll see.”

***

It had been a long, torturous week, where practically nothing had gotten done besides the executive decisions Keith’s parents made in his absence, but finally Keith couldn’t smell Lance anymore.

He could think clearly, could act on his own free will instead of acting on instinct and desire. And still, Keith found himself in front of Lance’s door.

He wanted to see him.

It had been an entire week since Keith had last seen his fiancé, since he had last held the Omega in his arms and kissed him sweetly, and he kissed him.

So, with a giddy smile, Keith knocked on the door, awaiting the creaking sound of Lance’s feet on the floor approaching the door.

Except, that sound never came. In fact, Keith couldn’t hear anything inside of the room.

“Lance?” Keith asked as he knocked again, waiting a few more moments to see if maybe Lance had just been asleep, but again, there was nothing.

Keith gave up on waiting for Lance to come to the door, restorting to opening it himself, stepping inside with the hope that maybe, possibly, Lance hadn’t heard him. But, as soon as Keith’s eyes fell on the bed, his worst fear came true.

In Lance’s place, where the blankets were still wrinkled and folded over, there was nothing.

Lance was gone, and the window was blown wide open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Just wanted to let you guys know that I started a new story! This one will still be continued and updated regularly, but there was another story that I’ve been dying to write, and I’d be so thankful if you could take the time to read it! Thank you in advance!!! 💖


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this one hurt

There was a faint metal clanking ringing in Lance’s ears, sounding distant and far off as Lance slowly came to. There was a small groan that escaped his throat and his eyes fluttered open, the world spinning and blurry around him while his eyes adjusted to his surrounding which were… different. Lance was pretty sure that he had fallen asleep in his room, so why was he… outside? And who was carrying him?

This was a question that Lance couldn’t really answer, considering he was currently being carried like a sack of potatoes by a person completely adorned by metal armor, and based on that sword the individual was carrying, Lance didn’t think this was a friendly stroll.

He tried to figure out how far away from the castle he was, but it proved to be impossible. Not only did Lance have no experience in the woods, minus the trip with Keith, but he couldn’t even seen the castle. Hell, he couldn’t even see the town! 

So, Lance was stuck, his mind racing as he tried to stay as still as possible, to give away no sign that he had awaken to whoever had taken him, trying to figure out a way he could escape.

***

“What do you mean he’s _gone_?” Krolia practically screeched, hands rested firmly on her hips. “I give you guards _one_ job, to protect the boy, and you _lose him_?”

Keith watched as his mother tore the guards that had been tasked with protecting Lance’s room a new one, and if Lance hadn’t been stolen, he would’ve felt a little bit of remorse. 

But, to be honest, Keith didn’t know what he was feeling right now. 

His head was flooded with worries and fears over where Lance was, how far away he was, who was with him, what was happening to him, what if he was—

“Keith,” Shiro said, ripping the prince away from that train of thought before it could derail and get even darker. “We’re going to find him.”

Keith turned his head to look up at Shiro, sighing softly. There were so many emotions coursing through Keith’s veins — fear, guilt, anger. Anger was a big one, Keith periodically digging his nails into his palms to hold himself back, but, if he had it his way, he’d kill whoever took Lance himself.

“I’ll—“

“No, you’re staying here,” Shiro said, reading Keith’s thoughts before he even completely spoke them.

“What?” Keith basically hissed, clenching his fists again, his hands trembling from the force of it. “You really expect me to stay cooped up in here while Lance is out, god knows where, with someone who we don’t know the identity of? What if he’s hurt? What if they’re touching him? He _needs_ me, Shiro!”

“We already sent out a squadron to go and search the area, we don’t need you out there as well, putting yourself indanger. Let the guards do their job.”

“Yeah, they sure did such a _great_ job with that the first time.”

“Keith—“

“I’m going.” Keith’s gaze was dark, on the verge of growling as he pushed past Shiro, pulling the sword from his belt and gripping the handle as tight as he could, his knuckles turning white. “And you can’t stop me.”

***

There was an obvious tension in the air as Lance was carried to some unknown destination, the trees getting denser and denser the deeper they went, and Lance wasn’t sure how much longer he could pretend to be asleep for. 

This was too much for him to handle.

He had _just_ finished one of his worst heats in years. That night he had dreamt of seeing Keith again, feeling incredibly lonely all shut up in his room, but someone had come in and… well, Lance couldn’t quite remember what happened. He recalled falling asleep, but everything after that was a blur, and the next thing he knew, he was being carried over someone’s shoulder through the forest, and Lance was powerless to stop them. 

What was he even supposed to do?

Lance had lived an incredibly sheltered eighteen years of life, he didn’t have a clue of how to defend himself, nor was he strong enough to even fathom taking his captor on himself. But, maybe… maybe Lance could outrun them.

He definitely wouldn’t call himself the fastest person ever, but he was in no way slow, and in a situation like this, Lance was sure he could be even faster. He just wanted to be back at the castle, be back in his room where the bed was warm and soft and safe, be back where his friends were. Where Keith was.

God, all Lance wanted to do was be in Keith’s arms again. 

He never knew that a person could make him feel so safe with a simple gesture, holding him close and tight while Lance tucked his head beneath his chin, nuzzling close with a content smile, when everything was right with the world. Because they had each other. But now, Lance was alone, with no one else to protect him but himself, and he had no other choice. 

He was running.

***

“Keith, think about this for a moment,” Shiro pleaded as he followed Keith to the stables, brows furrowed in both anger and concern for the man.

“I already have,” Keith dismissed, taking Red from his cage, and upon their eyes first meetings, Keith could tell that Red knew something was up, the horse skipping the pissy attitude in favor of immediately letting Keith onto the saddle, gripping tightly at the reins. “I’m going to get him back, no matter what it takes.”

“But we don’t have a single clue on where he is, or who took him,” Shiro interjected, the stress getting to him as well as he massaged his temples. “We don’t even know if he’s still ali—“

“Don’t finish that sentence,” Keith practically hissed, his teeth clenched and grinding as he held so hard on the reins that Keith swore he could hardly feel his fingers. “He’s alive, and I’m going to bring him back.”

Keith wasn’t going to stick around for whatever Shiro had to say next, kicking Red’s side and holding on as he sprinted for the gate, pushing past the new fleet of guards that were filing out of the castle grounds, the world fading away around him, the only thing on his mind being Lance.

Lance. Beautiful, amazing, incredible Lance. The one person that made Keith feel like he wasn’t a monster, that was able to make him open up, to make the world melt away for even a short moment when he was able to hold Lance in his arms. The Lance that he loved.

The feeling hit him as hard as the wind, flowing through him until it overtook his entire being, snapping the reins to get Red to go even faster down the trail, as if there was something telling him where to go.

He loved Lance. He _loved_ him. With his whole entire being, more than he ever thought he could love someone, more than he ever would love someone. And that feeling felt so natural, like it had always been a part of him, as if there had always been that large space in his heart waiting for Lance to fill. Keith had never believed in soulmates, but Lance had to be a gift from the gods, and Keith wasn’t sure of what he had done to deserve him.

After all, Keith couldn’t even keep him safe. He’d failed the person he loved. He failed Lance when he needed him most, and he couldn’t forgive himself for it.

“I’m coming Lance,” Keith whispered, the world silent, his heartbeat pounding in his ears so loudly he wasn’t fully convinced it was his own. “Stay safe.”

***

Finding an opportunity to escape was turning out to be harder than Lance would’ve expected it to be, but then again, when did things ever come easy? His captor was walking for ages, saying nothing and giving Lance no clue of what the motive or intention was with this plan, but Lance couldn’t say that he really wanted to hear the reason, either. It was getting increasingly difficult to keep his composure, his breathing getting a bit wonky as they traveled deeper into the forest, the sword at the captor’s side glinting in the corner of Lance’s eye, serving as a constant reminder of what could happen if he couldn’t escape.

But then, they did stop, Lance having absolutely zero time to react before he was tossed to the ground, hitting the earth so hard that the wind was knocked straight from his lungs, spurring a coughing fit from the boy as he tried to regain the air he had lost and desperately needed.

“You have caused me a great amount of trouble, you know,” his captor spoke, and immediately Lance recognized the voice. “I _told_ you to learn your place.”

“Acxa?” Lance wheezed, eyes wide before they narrowed into a glare, attempting to lean up on his elbows. “What the hell is the matter with you? You’re insa—“ Lance was cut off by a foot to his throat, and even with a helmet on, Lance could feel the glare coming from her.

“How _dare_ you speak to me that way, you insolent brat,” she growled, pushing her foot down harder on Lance’s neck to make his breathing even more difficult than it already was. “I’m doing this for the well-being of the kingdom. A person of such low standing has no right to question me.” 

Even with the pressure to his throat, Lance managed a ragged inhale, squinting his eyes as he rasped out a response.

“Keith will—“

Before he could finish, the foot was removed from his throat and instead used to kick his side, causing a shout of pain as he curled into a ball, his chest heaving, barely able to breath once more.

“Keith will what?” Acxa hummed, cocking her head to the side, leaning down to grab him by the rustled hair on his head, lifting him into the air with ease, only sending more pain through the already injured boy. “Last time I checked, Keith wasn’t here. You wanna know why?” She asked, barely pausing for more than a second before continuing. “Because he doesn’t care about you. You’re nothing but a pretty toy. Something he can show off. You’re no better than a diamond ring, and much less useful, if you ask me. You’d be doing everyone a favor by disappearing.” The words were a punch in the gut, Lance’s eyes dropping the the ground. Acxa scoffed and dropped him, Lance groaning a bit as he tried to get up, only the collapse back down onto his knees, grabbing at his side where Acxa’s foot at collided with him.

“You’re… wrong…” Lance panted, looking up at her for a moment, and then that sharp pain was back upon another kick to his side, sending him rolling a few feet away on the ground. 

“Am I?” Acxa inquired as she walked closer, pulling off her helmet to glare down at him without any obstruction. “Or are you really that stupid? I quite pity you, actually. Nobody ever told you how worthless you really are. How no one is going to miss you.”

There was another kick, and Lance was rolling down the side of a ditch, coughing and gasping for air, covered in dirt and filth by the time he reached the bottom. All it took was a quick glance to the side to seal Lance’s fate in his mind, able to see the approaching silhouettes of wolves in the distance. With the little energy he had in him, Lance turned his head to look up, seeing Acxa standing on the edge of the ditch, only to slip her helmet back on and turn away, disappearing from Lance’s sigh before the world dissolved to black, Lance laying all alone in some ditch deep in the forest as he slipped out of consciousness.

“I’m sorry, Keith,” Lance exhaled, his eyes blinking slowly, getting harder and harder to keep open. “I…” he swallowed, closing his eyes.

“I love you.”

 

***

There was a booming crack of thunder in the sky, the wind rustling the trees as the sky opened up, immediately soaking the earth below with its tears, cold and heavy through the trees, the pounding of hooves on the hard ground playing over and over in Keith’s head. 

He was becoming desperate now. He had been searching for Lance for hours, and yet, nothing. There was no sign of Lance anywhere, no trail or proof that he had ever even set foot in these woods. It was as if he never existed in the first place, like he had been some figment of Keith’s imagination, and it broke Keith’s heart, and he couldn’t tell if those were tears or raindrops on his face anymore.

That was, until something caught Keith’s attention, causing him to yank at the reins, Red halting to a stop. Keith looked all around him, breathing heavily and swallowing his nerves, trying to listen past the sound of his own heartbeat.

Was that… howling?

Keith kicked Red’s side again, heading off in the direction of the sound, another layer of panic setting in. Of course, it could just be nothing. There were wolves all over the forest. But then again, wolves didn’t really howl in the middle of the day in the rain without a good reason. And Keith’s instincts where telling him to head in that direction, and it wasn’t like he had any other ideas.

As Keith approached a dip in the land, he could see the source of the noise — a pack of wolves, all howling and surrounding…

Keith jumped from Red, approaching the edge to investigate further, his eyes slowly widening until he was fairly certain he no longer had pupils.

“Lance!”

The shout ripped from his throat, catching attention of the wolves curled up around the body and the sky, another crack of thunder echoing throughout the sky, followed by a blinding flash of lighting that would’ve startled Keith in any other situation. But he was a little preoccupied at the moment, sliding down the side of the ditch and falling to his knees at Lance’s side, scooping the male into his arms and looking down at him, so many emotions running through him that Keith was having a hard time processing what was going on.

“Lance, please, talk to me,” he begged, one arm holding him against his chest while the other cupped at his face, his eyes crinkling in a mixture of rage and anguish, his love remaining unresponsive.

He examined all over Lance’s body with his eyes, able to see the dirt and the bruises that must have formed hours before, each mark causing the crack in his heart to extend more and more, before he looked back up to his face, his vision starting to get blurry. He wiped one of his own tears from Lance’s cheek with the pad of his thumb, leaning down to press a gentle kiss to his forehead.

“I’m sorry,” he breathed out, closing his head tightly and pulling Lance closer, burying his head against the boy’s chest. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve been able to protect you, I should’ve gotten to you sooner, I—“ Keith chokes out, his tears soaking into the clothes on Lance’s limp frame. “I love you.”

The silence that followed hurt Keith more than anything else in his life ever had, his heart shattering into a billion little pieces and the dam broke, his tears spilling out as he pulled Lance as close as possible.

With everything going on around him, Keith nearly missed the small voice that traveled to his ear. But he didn’t, his head immediately shooting up, blinking the tears away as he looked down at Lance, those brilliant blue eyes scrunching tightly before slowly blinking open, gazing up at him in confusion.

“Keith..?” He asked, his voice in a whisper, raspy and nearly gone, but Keith could hear it. And that’s all that mattered.

“Lance!” Keith cried, pulling Lance closer to him again, feeling the arms of the Omega wrapping around the back of his neck, assuming the other realized what was going on now. 

Keith only loosened on his grip when Lance coughed, looking into his eyes with brows pulled down in concerned, a hand cupping his cheek, and even with being covered in dirt and in obvious pain, Lance was still the most beautiful thing Keith had ever laid his eyes on.

“I love you,” Keith breathed out again, unable to stop himself, but it wasn’t like he tried to anyway. It felt right.

Lance’s eyes widened a bit, blinking up at Keith as if he hadn’t expected to hear those words, but it only took a moment for his expression to soften, leaning his cheek into Keith’s touch.

“I love you too.”

Those four words were all Keith needed to hear to have him surging forward to capture Lance’s lips in his own, letting everything else melt away as the kissed, covered in rain and dirt and tears, but none of it mattered, they were in each other’s arms again.

And everything was perfect.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe

Keith stood outside of the room, switching between pacing frantically and leaning against the wall, tapping his foot quickly, nervously, worrying at his bottom lip. He ignored the servants attempting to hand him dry, clean clothes, waving them away in favor of staying and waiting, not letting himself go anywhere until he knew that Lance was safe.

There was a week left until the wedding now, and with Lance being kidnapped and then returned with several bruises and injuries, no one could tell what was going to happen. Hell, some people even started to spread whispers that Lance wished to back out of the marriage because of what happened. 

Keith tried to block those thoughts from his head — Lance wasn’t going to leave, Lance loved him. And, if Lance did want to leave, Keith would go with him. He would follow Lance to the edge of the universe if he asked. He couldn’t imagine a world without Lance, nor did he want to.

It was at that moment when the door to Lance’s room opened, the doctor stepping out and closing it behind her, Keith gripping the woman by the shoulders and frantically looking into her eyes.

“How is he?”

“He’s got several bruises on his sides and ribs, and from what I can feel, I’d assume that one at least one is broken,” she explained, the words like daggers to Keith’s heart, unable to conjure up a reason as to why Lance deserved that. He didn’t. That was the answer. “But, he will heal with time. I’d suggest he stay in bed for a few days, to let his injuries heal up a bit before he gets on his feet again, but even then he should take it easy, overexertion could cause further injuries.”

Keith nodded, letting go of the doctor’s shoulders with a sigh. No matter how awful Keith felt about everything, Lance was going to be okay. He was alright. He was safe.

“Thank you,” he breathed out in a relieved sigh, bowing his head a little. “I… can I see him?”

“Of course,” the woman nodded, stepping aside to give Keith a clear path to the door, who immediately seized the opportunity and walked right in, closing the door gently behind him, before letting his eyes fall onto Lance.

The boy’s face was solemn, looking down at his lap as he was slumped against the pillows. The damp and dirty clothes he had been wearing before were traded for a flowing white gown, simple and long sleeved, and there was no constricting corset around his waist, making his breathing a bit easier despite the sharp pain he felt with each inhale. As he heard the door close, Lance gazed up, his sad, hurt expression softening into a smile that made Keith’s heart swell in his chest as he walked over, sitting down slowly on the edge of the bed.

“Lance, I…” Keith trailed off, his eyes scanning over Lance’s body, trying to remind himself that Lance was back home, he was safe, he was going to be okay, even if everything else told him otherwise. “I’m so sorry.”

“For what?” Lance asked, reaching for one of Keith’s hands, taking it in both of his own to gently squeeze around it. “You saved me. You have nothing to apologize for.”

“But I do!” Keith argued, placing his free hand overtop of Lance’s, gazing deeply into those blue eyes. “I should’ve known that something was wrong. I should’ve been able to find you sooner,” he listed, gritting his teeth, leaning forward to rest his head in the crook of Lance’s neck. “I failed you, and I’m sorry.”

“Keith,” Lance breathed out, pulling his hands away to Keith’s to move his head away from his neck, framing his face in his hands and forcing the Alpha to look him in the eyes. “This is in no way your fault,” he assured, smiling sweetly. “You did everything you could, and you _found_ me, Keith. So you didn’t fail me, there’s no way you could ever possibly fail me.”

Keith fell silent, leaning his head into Lance’s palms complacently, his eyes fluttering closed to breath in a few times, slowly, calmingly.

Lance was safe. Everything was fine.

Keith opened his eyes and cracked a small smile, reaching up to gently hold Lance’s wrists, a silent request for Lance to keep his hands on his cheeks, and the Omega was happy to comply, brushing his thumbs over Keith’s cheekbones with a soft hum. 

“Who did this to you?” 

The question was soft, and if Lance hadn’t been listening for it, he might’ve not heard it at all. He blinked, his thumbs halting in their motions, staring up at Keith.

“Huh?”

“Who did this to you?” Keith repeated, his breath trembling slightly from an emotion that Keith could only identify as rage. “I swear to you, that they will never harm you again.”

Lance bit his lip softly, Acxa’s cold glare from Lance’s spot on the ground burned in his retinas, flashing each time he blinked, yet Lance couldn’t bring himself to blame her. It was odd, Lance hated that woman, and she had left him for dead, and _still_ he couldn’t say her name. He sighed, letting his hands drop to his lap, turning his head away from Keith.

“I don’t know,” he whispered, closing his eyes. “They never took off their helmet, so I didn’t get to see their face,” Lance explained gently, and he only opened his eyes as his head was pulled towards Keith, tucking under his chin as Keith sighed.

“Okay,” he nodded, leaning his head down a bit to kiss Lance’s head. “I’m sorry,” he said again, carding his fingers through Lance’s hair. 

They stayed like that for a bit, Keith keeping a hand on Lance’s head and an arm wrapped around him, Lances hand pressed up to Keith’s chest, until Keith backed away a little, giving Lance a warm smile. 

“I’ll let you get some rest,” Keith hummed, leaning down to press a gentle peck to Lance’s cheek, then he stood up and turned towards the door. But, Keith barely made it one step before something tugged at his sleeve, Keith turning back to look down at Lance.

“I… could you actually… stay?” Lance asked, his cheeks morphing into a dark red, eye contact becoming hard to maintain. “I don’t want to be alone.”

Keith’s expression instantly softened, nodding softly before he sank down onto the bed again, replacing the sleeve between Lance’s fingers with his own hand. 

“Sure,” he hummed, running his thumb gently over Lance’s knuckles. “I’ll stay as long as you want me too.”

***

“She did _what_?”

The screech has Lance’s ears ringing, a finger quickly raising to his lips to shush Romelle. 

“Not so loud!” Lance hissed, his voice in a hushed whisper, and Romelle winced. 

“Sorry, I just… I can’t believe this,” she apologized, disbelief in her eyes as she moved to sit on the edge of the bed. “Why didn’t you tell Keith?”

“I don’t know!” He groaned, burying his face in his hands. “I wanted to, but I just couldn’t! And it’s so frustrating because I hate her and she deserves to be punished for it, but I just said that I couldn’t see who it was because I’m _stupid_!” Lance huffed and sunk down a little more on the pillows, creeping towards his fifth day under bed rest. 

Keith has been on and off between spending time with Lance and out in the kingdom, searching for the culprit. The wedding had been pushed back, which gave Keith more time to search, and servants would occasionally rush in to ask them questions about what they preferred while they were spending time with each other. Breathing had got a little easier, but Lance was definitely still in pain. 

“Well if Keith doesn’t find her I will set out and kill her myself,” Romelle grumbled, and from across the room, Allura sighed.

“You know, I agree with Romelle for once,” Allura nodded, looking over at the two while dusting off the vanity. “Acxa will face my uncontrollable wrath if I ever see her face around here again. They’ll need every guard in the kingdom to pry me from her.”

Romelle gave an approving nod while Lance laughed, though quickly letting it die down since laughter still kinda hurt, as unfortunate as that was, and shook his head softly.

“That isn’t really necessary—“

“Lance, she broke your ribs for crying out loud! It is more than necessary,” Romelle retorted, Allura backing her up.

“It’s not even enough, if you ask me.”

“I swear, I’ll shove her sword so far up her—“

“Alright, woah, guys,” Lance interjected, shaking his head and hands. “That is— no, that’s okay, there’s no need for that— wow.”

“Lance, have you told Keith _anything_ that Acxa said to you?” Allura asked, her hands propped firmly on her hips as she walked to Lance’s bedside, leaning down to stare straight into Lance’s eyes, which were growing guiltier by the second.

“Uh…” he trailed off, glancing to Romelle for help, only for her to be wearing the same stern expression. “Yeah! Totally! That’s, uh, definitely a thing that I did… yup…” 

“Lance,” Allura sighed, smacking a hand to her forehead. “I love you, but I’m gonna smack you.”

“Please don’t,” Lance whimpered, pulling the blankets a little bit over his face. “I’m already broken.”

“Which is exactly why you should tell Keith what happened!” Romelle exclaimed, Allura nodding. “You can’t just let her get away with this! She’s treasonous!”

“I know,” Lance sighed, covering his face with his hands and groaning. 

“Then it’s settled,” Allura hummed decisively, crossing her arms over her chest. “You’re telling him what happened. In fact…” she trailed off, smirking as she walked to the window, the shutters blown open to allow fresh air to enter the room. “I think that’s him right now.”

“ _What_?” Lance squawked, grunting and wincing as he jumped out of the bed to scurry to the windowsill, and sure enough, riding in through the gates on a noble steed was Keith, and Lance nearly sunk down onto the ground.

“Get going, kiddo,” Allura insisted, giving Lance’s back tony shoved as she coaxed him to the door. “You’ve got quite the conversation ahead of you, you wouldn’t want to miss him.”

“But—“

“ _Go_!” Lance couldn’t tell if it was Allura or Romelle that yelled, but he assumed it was both as the door slammed shut behind him, Lance letting out an exasperated sigh before beginning to make his way down to the stables, sore and slow, mainly because he was also trying to avoid detection from the bustling of servants and guards, who have gotten even more active due to the recent events that had taken place.

Though, Lance had managed to make it down, walking into the stables where Keith was putting Red back into his cage, Lance inhaling deeply before walking inside. 

“Keith?”

Keith perked up, his head whipping around to make eye contact with the boy that walked into the stables, rushing up to him with concern in his eyes. 

“Lance? What are you doing down here? Shouldn’t you be in bed?” Keith asked, taking Lance’s hands in his own and squeezing. “Is everything okay? Oh god, are you hurt? Where does it hurt? Stay here— I’ll get the doctor. No, better yet, I’ll carry you,” Keith rambled, leaning down to scoop Lance’s legs up before Lance quickly intervened. 

“Keith, I’m fine,” he insisted with a small laugh, looking into his eyes with a sincere smile.

Keith let out a small relieved breath, along with a sheepish laugh to accompany the redness that grew on his cheeks. “Sorry, I’ve just been a little… on edge, I guess,” Keith apologized, lowering his head a bit, pressing a kiss to the top of Lance’s head. “I’m just worried about you, you know?”

Lance nodded, gently squeezing Keith’s hands as reassurance. “I know. But, um… I actually wanted to tell you something.”

Oh god, here goes nothing.

“What is it?” Keith asked, quirking a brow curiously.

“Well… I… you see,” Lance stammered, clearing his throat as he felt it starting to close up from nerves. “There’s… I actually, when I was being carried away, I saw—“

“Your majesty.”

The voice made Lance’s blood run cold, his eyes widening and his body instantly tensing up. No. No way. This wasn’t possibly. How—

“—Acxa,” Lance breathed out, his voice hardly over a whisper.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i did not anticipate the sheer amount of chaos last chapter would create but i will not apologize

“Acxa?” 

Keith looked at the woman as she approached, brows raised in shock while Lance didn’t dare move.

“Where have you been? Shiro was worried sick.”

“My apologies, my prince,” she spoke, the innocent tone sending shivers up Lance’s spine. “I was out searching for Lord McClain when I got separated from the party. I decided to head back when I heard word of his safe return. It brings me much relief to know that he is safe.”

Keith nodded, looking down at Lance to smile, before realizing the others horrified expression, pale, as if he had just seen a ghost.

“Lance?” Keith asked, gently taking the boy’s hands into his own. “Are you okay?”

“I…” Lance trailed off, turning his head just slightly — enough to glance back at Acxa, whose eyes were already locked onto his. It was as if he was gazing into the eyes of Medusa, his heart stopping and his blood going cold, his hands a sickly clammy and his eyes began to blur a bit. No words were exchanged between them, but Lance could understand everything completely. Long story short, he was dead no matter what. “I’m fine,” he breathed out, looking up at Keith with a weak smile. “I think I just need to lie down.”

“Of course,” Keith hummed, gently soothing his thumbs over Lance’s knuckles, which had turned white. “You should’ve stayed in bed, Lance. You’re in no condition to be walking around yet.”

“You’re right,” Lance nodded, swallowing thickly. “Could you take me back to my room?”

“Ye—“

“Let me do it, your highness,” Acxa offered, and Lance nearly screamed. “I can assure he will be escorted safely.”

“I—“ Keith stammered, glancing down at Lance, who was trying his damn hardest to not combust at that very moment. “Alright, but if anything happens to him—“

“Nothing will happen,” Acxa assured, smiling as she unsheathed her sword just a smidge, the metal glistening in the sunlight, causing a small whimper to escape Lance’s throat, his hands trembling in Keith’s. “I’ll make sure of it.”

With a nod, and a quick kiss to Lance’s cheek, Keith handed Lance off to Acxa before going to mount onto Red again, deciding that if Lance was in Acxa’s care, he could go out to search some more. Lance watched with a pained expression as Keith rode off into the distance, leaving him alone with the one person responsible for this whole mess in the first place. 

“I see you haven’t told him,” Acxa said, and Lance swore he flinched at just her voice alone. “You’re smart, I might have underestimated you.”

“You don’t say,” Lance grumbled, folding his arms across his chest as a subconscious way to protect the bones that Acxa had just broken a few days prior. 

“But, let me warn you,” Acxa hissed, grabbing Lance’s side and gripping hard, leaning in to whisper into his ear. Lance’s breath caught in his throat, a shooting pain rippling from nerve to nerve as he thumb pressed down right where his rib was cracked. “I will do so much more than break a measly rib if you even _think_ of telling Keith the truth. Do I make myself clear?”

“C-Crystal,” Lance winced, finally breathing out a sigh of relief as Acxa loosened her grip.

“You know, I’m surprised that you even survived long enough for Keith to find you,” Acxa spoke as she lead Lance back towards the kingdom’s entrance from the horses’ stables. “And if I had it my way, you’d be dead already, but it seems that the prince likes having you around. It’s a shame really, he’d be better suited without you. If only he could realize that.”

“Oh, and you think that _you_ could make him happier?” Lance snapped, and he was honestly a bit taken aback as Acxa laughed.

“Oh please, don’t be absurd,” she chuckled, shaking her head. “I have no interest in courting that fool. He has no idea what it takes to run a kingdom, even more so with you constantly taking away all of his attention.” Lance swore he caught a sneer at the end of her statement. “He was better when he was a bit temperamental. Back then he actually got things done. Now he’s much too busy chasing you around like a dog after its own tail.”

“What kind of benefits would being moody give a kingdom?” Lance asked, furrowing his brows slightly while his lip twitched in disgust, each word coming from Acxa’s mouth making his stomach churn. “Wouldn’t be be a much better ruler by being kind and compassionate and loving?”

“Never mind, I was wrong. You really _are_ an idiot. I cannot believe _you_ of all people are going to be the queen.” 

Well, that was if Lance would even live long enough to get there.

“Oh, I’m so sorry that my views are such an inconvenience for you. I’d better shut my mouth before I get tossed with the wolves aga—“ Lance was cut off as his ribs were gripped again, his knees nearly buckling beneath him. “You… have got to be… the worst person I’ve ever met,” Lance hissed out through his teeth, releasing a breath once Acxa let up on his ribs. 

“I’m honored.”

Lance quieted down as they began to pass other guards and servants, even if every fiber of his being was begging him to scream, to fall, to cause a scene or do literally anything to get him away from Acxa so that he could tell someone what she’d done. While he didn’t care what happened to himself, he couldn’t stand the thought of Acxa hurting Keith in any way, even if it was indirectly through hurting, or possibly killing, Lance.

He couldn’t do that to someone he loved.

“I hope you’ll remember what I said,” Acxa spoke as they approached Lance’s bedroom door, the woman turning the knob and pushing open the door before shoving Lance inside, the boy, collapsing down onto his knees and arms, barely stopping himself before his ribs could hit. He had no time to collect his bearings before Acxa grabbed his arm, flipping him onto his back and shoving her sword at his throat, tilting his head up with the sharp edge of the blade. “Because I meant it.”

With that, Acxa turned away, the feeling of the blade lingering on his throat as the metal clanking of her armor got quieter and quieter in her wake. Lance sighed heavily, his head dropping down as he remained on the floor for an extended moment.

“I am so screwed.”

***

“That bruise is new,” Keith hummed as he brushed his fingers over Lance’s knee, the smaller boy curled up against him as they lay together in his bed, something that had become a common routine since Lance had returned. 

“I doubt it,” Lance replied, and Keith could notice the sulking that Lance was so obviously trying to hide. “Bruises take time to form.”

“But a week?” Keith asked, raising his brows slightly as he soothed his hand along Lance’s hip comfortingly. “All of the other bruises came in already, and they’re starting to heal, but this one isn’t.” Keith looked at Lance’s face, examining every feature along his smooth skin with slightly narrowed eyes. “Is there something you’re not telling me?”

Lance tensed up a bit, glancing up at Keith with slightly wide eyes, but there was no way he knew. Acting aloof was understandable, but there was no way he would jump to the conclusion that Acxa had been the one to kidnap and beat him, and was now practically holding him hostage to keep their little secret to protect himself, and by extension, Keith — right?

“Of course not!” Lance assured, managing a soft smile. “You know as much as I do.”

It took a moment for Keith to seem convinced, Lance relaxing a bit as he nodded and kissed the top of his head. He furrowed his brows again a moment later and took one of Lance’s hands, rubbing his thumb curiously over the base of Lance’s left ring finger, stroking in back and forth motions.

“Don’t you usually wear a ring on this finger?”

Lance sighed, turning his head away with a small frown.

“Well, I used to. It was my mother’s ring. She gave it to me before I came here, as a sort of reminder of her. But, I haven’t seen it since I was taken, so…” Lance trailed off, shrugging his shoulders. “It’s not a big deal.”

Keith frowned, gritting his teeth slightly as he continued to gentle ministrations on Lance’s hand, occasionally bringing his hand up to press gentle kisses to the back of it. 

“I’m sorry,” Keith sighed against the back of Lance’s hand, pressing another lingering kiss to his knuckles. “It meant a lot to you, didn’t it?” 

“I mean, yeah, of course it did,” Lance nodded, looking up at Keith with a gentle blush on his complexion, paired with a warm smile to match. “But I’ll survive. I miss it, but if I have to lose it to be here with you right now, then it’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make.”

Keith cracked a small smile at Lance’s words, leaning down to connect their lips in a soft, slow kiss, only pulling away to grin and rest their foreheads together. 

“You are too kind for your own good, do you know that?”

“I may have heard that once or twice, yeah.”

Keith laughed, shaking his head softly before kissing him again, Lance kissing back with a content hum.

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

***

Red trotted down the cobblestone path for what felt like the millionth time that week, Keith growing tired and impatient passing the same shops and buildings, no new clues of Lance’s captor popping up, and even after questioning what had to be everyone in the village, no one came forward with any information. 

“Maybe they just fled to another town,” Keith muttered, Red giving an annoyed whinny in response. “Well what else could’ve happened? Someone had to have taken Lance! He didn’t kick himself!”

_Great, I’m so frustrated that I’m talking to a horse._

Keith let out an exasperated groan as he hunched forward, continuing down the ever so familiar path. That was, until something caught his eye. 

It was a shop that he had passed so many times before, but it wasn’t until now that he realized what was being sold, and an idea popped into his head. He slowly pulled the reins and coaxed Red to a halt before jumping off and walking inside, Red waiting on the road (and maybe sneaking a few glances into the window). 

Keith left an eternity later, or at least what felt like it, with a little less weight in his coin purse and a small box in his pocket, mounting onto Red with a satisfied smile, turning him towards home with excitement pounding in his heart. 

“Lance!” Keith exclaimed as he entered his fiancé’s room, the boy sitting up in bed upon his arrival with a growing smile.

“Well, aren’t you energetic today,” Lance snickered, quirking a brow as Keith plopped himself onto the edge of the bed, giddy and smiley, something that Lance thanked god everyday for the opportunity to see. “What’s the occasion?”

“I just got something special for you,” Keith hummed, shrugging his shoulders. “Do you think you’re well enough to attend the banquet in a few days?”

“Banquet?” Lance repeated, confusion spreading across his expression now. “I didn’t hear anything about that.”

“It’s just a small thing my parents set up as an apology for the people attending the wedding, since it had to be pushed back and all that junk,” Keith explained quickly, waving his hand. “I don’t expect you to be able to dance and run around, but do you think you’d just be able to be there?”

“For you?” Lance hummed, grinning. “I could definitely do that.”

Keith beamed, leaning down to press a loving kiss to Lance’s lips, who was eager to return it with two hands framing Keith’s face, pulling him close and holding him there with a smile.

“Great,” Keith nodded when he pulled away, leaning into one of Lance’s palms and tilting his head just enough to peck his palm, loving the giggle it drew from the younger boy. “I have something to give you there.”

“Oh, do you?” Lance hummed, raising his brows playfully. “I can’t wait.”

“Oh believe me, it’ll be worth the wait,” Keith boasted, giving a cocky smirk that Lance swore he’d seen on himself before. “It’ll knock your socks off.”

“I’m definitely holding you to that, hot shot,” Lance snickered, brushing his thumbs over Keith’s cheekbones as he held his face in his hands. 

“Duly noted,” Keith laughed, leaning over to steal another quick kiss, and then another, and another, and another, until the room was filled with the mixture of small giggles and quick kisses.

And Keith didn’t think he’d ever been happier before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the calm before the storm


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)

A few days had passed, and it was the day of the banquet. The castle was abuzz and frantic, last minute preparations being done as they awaited the arrival of countless other royals from across the land. Of course, with the spike in work that needed completion, Keith had had less and less time to visit Lance in bed, but Lance had just been given the green light to mobility again, his ribs already healed quite a bit from the lack of movement.

Though, he’s sure he would’ve been able to walk around sooner if someone hadn’t thrown him to the ground.

Regardless, Lance had used this chance to see Keith that morning, following the scent that had started to cling to him from their constant contact to the ballroom, where a few servants were speaking to him, though about what, Lance couldn’t hear. 

Keith seemed to notice Lance’s arrival however, turning his head a bit to glance towards the doorway, his tense expression quickly melting into a relieved one. The maids parted as Keith walked past, approaching Lance with a growing grin as he clasped his hands in his own, leaning down to gently peck Lance’s lips.

“You’re up!” He beamed, Lance nodding as he gently squeezed his hands. 

“I am. Doctor said I was all cleared to walk around, and with kinda perfect timing too,” he giggled. “Everything looks great so far, I’m sure the guests will love it.”

“You think so?” Keith hummed, looking back at the work that had been done in the large room, purple flowers draped up along the arches and wrapped around the pillars along the walls, the balcony that led off from it decorated with the same thing. Keith had let his parents pick the food that would be served, since, without Lance to help him, organizing something like this was _hard_ , and honestly, he wasn’t sure if it was good enough to make up for the postponing of the wedding, but if Lance liked it he wouldn’t fret too much.

“Yeah,” Lance assured with a confident nod, taking the opportunity to kiss Keith’s cheek when the Alpha wasn’t expecting it, the red that bloomed on his cheeks showing that he clearly didn’t mind it. “But I have to ask, why purple?” Lance inquired with an arched brow, looking up to Keith. “Isn’t red like, your thing?”

“Well, yeah, it is, but you know, since red is my thing and blue is your thing, I figured I’d mix them together,” Keith explained with a sheepish smile, shrugging his shoulders. “It’s kind of dumb when I say it out loud, though.”

“I don’t think it’s dumb.” Lance smiled sweetly, that ever familiar floating feeling swelling again in his chest. 

“You don’t?” Keith looked back down at him, cracking a smile.

“Not at all. I think it’s very sweet, actually,” he nodded, moving his thumbs over Keith’s knuckles, a habit he had picked up whenever Keith would stress about something. It seemed to calm him, and Lance certainly didn’t mind doing it. It was a small gesture, but it meant a lot for both of them.

“You’re too much,” Keith grinned, slipping one of his hands away from Lance’s to cup his cheek, before swooping down to connect their lips. 

Lance always enjoyed these little kisses between them. He’d take any chance that he got to steal them, enjoying how the world would disappear around them for even a brief moment in time. The stress, their own personal fear. It would all go away in an instant, ripped away underneath the tidal waves in Lance’s eyes and singed in the fire of Keith’s gaze, melting away into oblivion while they stayed in each other’s embrace.

But of course, like all things, the moment had to come to an end. Mainly because of the startling sound of someone clearing their throat right behind them, drawing Keith’s attention while Lance huffed at the loss of lip contact.

“My Prince, the guests will arrive soon. I suggest you stay focused.”

Lance nearly growled. Of course it was her.

“Acxa,” Keith sighed, loosening his grip sightly on Lance’s hand while letting the palm on his cheek fall to his side. “Can’t I just have a moment with him?”

“You’ve had a moment with him every day this week. You can live without him for a few hours.”

Lance was at about his wits end with this woman. Sure, Keith was a busy guy, Lance understood that well enough. No one ever said that being a prince _wasn’t_ hard, but come on! Could Lance not have one day where he could have Keith without any distractions or interruptions. If Lance didn’t know any better, he’d think that Acxa was the one marrying Keith with how much she tore them apart. 

“Acxa—“

“No, she’s right,” Lance interrupted, shaking his head softly. “Go. I’ll see you tonight, yeah?”

“Wha— are you sure?” Keith asked, furrowing his brows slightly while Lance gave another curt nod, even if he didn’t want to. 

“Positive. I’ll have to get fitted soon anyway,” Lance continued, and with a soft sigh and a kiss to his cheek, Keith nodded and moved to walk from the ballroom, but Acxa remained behind.

“You know, some people might be getting the wrong idea about Keith spending so much time I’m your quarters,” Acxa said, and Lance definitely didn’t like where this was going. 

“Excuse me?”

“Oh please, don’t act like you’re all innocent. You know _exactly_ what I mean.”

“I don’t—“ Lance stammered, finding himself breathless from the dark red that overtook his face, his heart lurching into his throat. “Are you seriously accusing me of sleeping with him?” Lance asked in a hushed tone, and by the look on Acxa’s face, he doesn’t need an answer.

“You tell me.”

“I can’t believe this,” Lance breathed out, taking a short step back and shaking his head, his thin brows furrowing down to slightly crease his skin. “I would— I can’t— how _dare_ you. I would never do something like that before marriage. Who do you think I am?”

Sure, Lance had certainly had those kinds of thoughts before. Hell, Keith was all he could think about while in heat, and the name may have left those trembling lips every once in a while, but he was raised knowing well enough what happens to Omegas that had a sexual relationship or experience with someone before they were married. Without going too much into detail, it was bad. 

_Really bad._

It was one of those things Omegas were taught as children, their growing minds easily implanted with the horrifying images of the punishments Omegas endured if they happened to seduce an Alpha, or even a Beta, into premarital sex. And if something like that wasn’t enough, the partner received punishment as well, and Lance would _never_ do that to Keith, no matter how much they both wanted it.

“You reek of him, it’s not hard to come to such a conclusion,” Acxa spat, her eyes dark and narrowed. “And with you, I can never be too sure.”

Lance would’ve rather her call him a whore, honestly.

“You—“ Lance gasped, the redness on his face caused by both embarrassment and anger at this point. A shaky hand rose to accusingly point at her, his eyes darting up and down as they slowly narrowed into a glare. He knew what he wanted to say, but he tripped over his tongue, nothing actually coming out as Acxa stared expectantly. “You’re vile.”

Suddenly, Acxa’s hand grabbed at his wrist, yanking it down to his side and twisting his arm the wrong way slowly, the pain rippling through his body and burning tears into his retinas, fingers digging into the tan skin on his thin wrist.

“I’d suggest you think about your words before you speak them, hm? I’d hate to have you thrown with the wolves again.”

And normally, Lance would’ve snapped back, but he could tell in her tone that she was serious.

Deadly serious.

He had gotten lucky the first time. The wolves hadn’t harmed him at all. In fact, they had actually tried to keep him warm in the frozen rain, for some reason that Lance couldn’t quite put his finger on. But then again, they were wild animals — you could never tell what an animal would do when put in that situation. And the last thing Lance needed was to be thrown into a pack of hungry wolves.

How had he managed to get himself in this situation again?

Acxa relaxed his arm with a grunt, Lance quickly grabbing at his wrist and panting softly, the pain slowly dimming as it was able to return to its natural position. Without a simple word, Acxa turned away to leave the ballroom, leaving Lance alone in the space that seemed to get bigger with every passing moment.

How none of the maids in the room had seen nothing was beyond him.

But he shouldn’t have been surprised. When did things ever come easy for him?

***

“So you didn’t tell him?”

“Well, no, not exactly— _ow!_ ” Lance yelped at the hand that clashed with the back of his head, whimpering as he rubbed it, whipping his head around to glare at the blonde headed girl behind him. “That hurt! What the hell?”

“He was right there! How did you not tell him?” Romelle screeched, Lance wincing at the volume of it.

“It’s more complicated than that!”

“Alright, that’s enough yelling you two,” Allura asserted, positioning herself to stand between the two Omegas. “But seriously, Lance, how didn’t you tell him?” Even if her tone was softer, Lance still flinched at the question.

“We—“ he started, swallowing the nervous lump that formed in his throat. “We were kinda interrupted.”

“By who? Couldn’t you have just continued? This is important, Lance!” Romelle exclaimed, her voice cracking slightly. 

“Acxa.”

The room fell silent, and if it wasn’t for the anger that Lance could smell coming from the two women, Lance would’ve felt awkward.

“That _bitch_ —“

“Romelle!”

“No, Allura, I mean it. How could she possibly think of showing her face around here again? I swear, I’ll go tell Keith myself—“

“No!” Lance yelled, grabbing Romelle’s wrist before she could make it to the door. “Please, just— no. I promise I’ll tell him, I don’t want to drag anyone else into this.”

“Lance,” Romelle said, turning to face him. “Every second she’s free to roam around is another second that you’re in danger. You know what she did the first time!”

Now was a bad time for Lance to mention that Acxa was still threatening him, so he held his tongue.

“I agree,” Allura spoke up, both Omegas turning to look at her. “Lance, she’s dangerous. You have to say something.” 

“And I _will_ ,” Lance sighed, letting go of Romelle’s wrist. “I just… can’t I just enjoy tonight? Then I’ll tell him tomorrow, I promise.”

Allura and Romelle exchanged concerned glances, as if having a silent conversation, before a sigh left each of their lips.

“Fine,” Romelle agreed, nodding her head. “But if you don’t tell him first thing tomorrow, I will.”

Lance should’ve been nervous about the threat, but he wasn’t, feeling a smile form instead.

“Thank you.”

“Now,” Allura hummed with a grin, grabbing Lance’s shoulders and guiding him away from the door. “Let’s get you ready for tonight.”

***

Keith stood at the top of the room between his parents, eyes trained on the two entrances as the guests flooded in. Chatter quickly filled the room, mixing with the soft drone of classical music that was being played in the corner, each guest coming up to greet both Keith and his parents with a kiss to their hands and a smile, but Keith couldn’t care less.

He just wanted to see Lance.

Keith felt his eyes moving on their own each time he heard footsteps entering the room, feeling a small twinge of disappointment.

Yeah, sure, maybe he was taking his time to get ready, but did it really take _this_ long? The small box in his pocket was burning his skin, causing nervousness and excitement to bubble in his stomach, and he couldn’t tell if he wanted to smile or puke. A hand to his shoulder ripped him from his thoughts, and he looked up to Shiro, who had managed to walk up to him without him noticing to greet him with a smile.

“He’s coming, don’t worry,” Shiro assured, and Keith hated how he was able to easily read him like that.

“Right,” Keith breathed out, nodding. “I know that.”

“Then why do you look like you’re about to pass out?”

“I’m nervous, okay!” Keith groaned, covering his face with his hands. “You know what I have planned!”

Shiro laughed, patting Keith’s back. “Yeah, yeah, I know. Lance is gonna love it,” he said, looking over to the entrance of the room. “And there he is.”

Keith immediately pulled his hands from his face, eyes instantly falling on the doorway as the room seemed to still, going quiet as Lance walked in. And Keith wouldn’t lie, it was suddenly hard to breath.

Lance waltzed into the room with an elegant delicacy, his head bowed down slightly and Keith had sort of forget his submissive role in society over the past few weeks. But god, he couldn’t really complain when Lance looked like _that_. 

Two long, light blue sleeves hugged around Lance’s arms, the dress tight around his upper chest before it trailed down into a loose fitting form — for his healing ribs, Keith figured — flowing down to the ground, a larger piece of white translucent fabric trailing down as well and dragging along behind him. He wore a small golden tiara upon his head, and Keith immediately recognized it as his mother’s tiara from before she had married his father.

“I knew he’d look good in it,” Keith could distantly hear Krolia say, walking down the steps to quickly meet Lance in the center of the room.

His eyes danced over Lance’s frame, following the curves of his body, having to will himself to meet Lance’s bright eyes, and he felt parched.

“Sorry I’m late,” Lance said, and Keith could hear a small tremble of embarrassment in his voice. “It was harder to get ready than I expected, and Romelle and Allura were really no help at all—“

Keith gave a small, fast nod as Lance rambled, swallowing to try and lubricate his throat a bit as he stared in awe, almost breathless as he opened his mouth to speak. 

“You’re beautiful.”

Lance blinked and his eyes went wide, and Keith couldn’t help but laugh at the ungodly shade of red that bloomed all over his face, the tips of his ears, and Keith swore he could see the color seep all the way down to his shoulders.

It was endearing.

“Keith!” Lance finally exclaimed, his hands coming up to loosely cover his mouth as he wore a sheepish, lovestruck smile. 

“What?” Keith asked, laughing softly as he cocked his head to the side. “All I said was that you’re beautiful.”

Keith was practically glowing when Lance made another startled noise, the shorter boy curling up to hide his beet red face behind his palms.

Man, if Keith knew that this was how Lance reacted to simply being called beautiful, he’d have to do it a lot more often.

“I can’t with you,” Lance giggled, moving his hands down slightly to peek up at Keith, who was _beaming_ , which nearly took Lance’s breath away.

“What?” Keith asked again, laughing since he knew exactly what he was doing. “It’s true though. You’re gorgeous.”

Keith reached to gently pull Lance’s hands from his face, moving one to rest on his shoulder while intertwining his fingers with Lance’s on his other hand, and Keith’s free hand moved to gently grip Lance’s hip. 

“Dance with me?” 

Lance grinned, nodding his head softly and watching as Keith’s smile grew. God, he could never say no to him.

Keith had half of a mind to know that they couldn’t go crazy, as much as he wanted to twirl and dip Lance all around the room, a silent urge to show every Alpha in the room who Lance belonged to, and, to equally show just how bad Keith had it for this boy. But Lance was still recovering, so Keith was content with just soft back and forth swaying for now, the two quickly falling into a small rhythm, within the center of the crowd that had decided to dance long before Lance had walked in.

“I’m not lying though,” Keith spoke up after a moment, thumb rubbing small circles into Lance’s side. “You look incredible.”

Lance grinned that sheepish grin that made Keith’s heart melt, glancing down at Keith’s chest to gently play with the deep scarlet blazer he wore. 

“And you look dashing,” he hummed, eyes flickering up to meet Keith’s gaze, sending a shiver down his spine, and god Keith was so _weak_. “I’m so lucky.”

“Shouldn’t that be my line?” Keith asked, arching a brow and chuckling softly, gently tugging Lance a bit closer with his grip on his waist.

Lance laughed, letting out a small hum as he leaned down to rest his head against Keith’s neck, satisfying some primal urge deep within the Alpha, a soft rumble spreading across his chest. 

Neither of them quite minded to silence that ensued, both satisfied with simply being in each other’s arms, swaying softly to the soft sounds of instruments serenading the room. But, after a while, Keith couldn’t help himself anymore.

“Lance,” he spoke up, immediately gaining the Omega’s attention as the head left his neck to gaze up at him with curiosity strone across his expression. “Come out to the balcony with me?”

“Okay,” Lance agreed with a suspicious laugh, following Keith regardless, their hands still laced together as they walked out underneath the night sky, twilight illuminating the darkness and providing a soft spotlight upon the star-speckled sky above them. 

“It’s beautiful tonight,” Lance sighed, eyes trained up towards the moon, Keith giving an acknowledging hum and a nod.

“It is.” But he wasn’t looking at the moon. While Lance was distracted by stargazing, Keith sunk down onto one knee, his heart throbbing his his chest as he awaited Lance’s attention, which wasn’t hard to get once their hands had untangled.

Lance blinked, looking down at Keith with slowly widening eyes.

“Keith—“

“Lance,” Keith started, a warm smile spreading on his face. “I know this is kind of dumb, since we’re getting married anyway, but it felt right. You deserve to be asked properly, you deserve to be pampered and cherished because you’re so amazing it makes my heart ache.” Keith rambled with a small chuckled, slowly reaching into his pocket to pull out that small box, and he could hear Lance’s breath hitch as soon as he saw it. With a shaky breath, Keith opened the box, revealing a small golden ring, three jewels lined up across the band. One small ruby on the left, one large diamond in the center, and one small sapphire on the right.

“So, Lance McClain, son of Lord McClain, and the absolute love of my life. Will you marry me?”

The question hung in the air as Lance’s eyes widened, and Keith could see the glossy sheen of tears in those bright blue eyes as he hands raised to cover his mouth, and even if they were already engaged, Keith was nervous.

So nervous, his hands were shaking. 

Then, Lance nodded, breathing out and impossibly bright smile.

“Yes,” he choked out, sniffling softly as he attempted to hold back tears (and failed). “Yes!”

Keith grinned and rose to his feet, Lance wrapping him up into a tight hug before Keith got a chance to slide the ring onto his finger, holding him close, but Keith wasn’t complaining. Once Lance had managed to back away, Keith finally lifted up Lance’s hand, removing the ring from the box to carefully slide it onto Lance’s delicate finger, his heart swelling at how it twinkled and shined under the moonlight, bright in contrast to Lance’s dark skin, and it was perfect in every way.

“I love you,” Keith said, gaze flickering from Lance’s hand up to his eyes, meeting those glossy blue orbs, Lance’s smile only growing more from those three simple words.

“I love you too,” Lance nodded with a soft giggle, leaning up to press a kiss to Keith’s lips, Keith happy to kiss back as the banquet continued inside without them. 

Lance’s hands moved up to cup Keith’s cheeks, holding his face close. Keith moved one hand down to hold onto Lance’s waist, the other gently wrapping around Lance’s wrist, and Lance couldn’t stop the wince that left his throat.

And Keith froze.

He pulled away from the kiss with open eyes blinking down at Lance before his gaze slowly moved to the wrist that he was still holding. Lance’s blood ran cold as Keith started to roll up the sleeve, quickly shaking his head.

“Keith, no, I—“

But it was too late.

Keith’s eyes widened at the bruises he saw dotted around Lance’s wrist, and he could instantly tell that they were fresh.

_Today_ fresh.

“Lance,” Keith said after what felt like an eternity of silence, his eyes meeting Lance’s, but they were dark, furious. “Who did this?”

But it was hardly a question.

“W-What?”

“Who. Did. This.” It was hissed through his teeth, the meet fact that someone would lay their hands on Lance in such a harmful way making his blood boil, and Lance could smell the bitter anger that mixed with his usually comforting scent.

“I— I— I don’t— it wasn’t—“ Lance stammered, feeling his palms grow clammy, and he couldn’t look away from Keith, no matter how much he wanted to. “You don’t— Acxa didn’t—“

And it was both of their turns to freeze.

Shit.

“Keith—“ 

“Go back to your room.”

“Keith, please, I—“

“ _Go back to your room,_ ” Keith growled, and it wasn’t a suggestion. It was a command. 

Lance was powerless against him, his hand falling back to his side, shakily tugging down his sleeve as he walked back into the ballroom, the knees trembling and feeling as though they would give out at any second.

Shiro watched as Lance meekly left the ballroom, furrowing his brows slightly, only to seen an angered Keith walking from the balcony next.

A _very_ angry Keith.

“Keith,” Shiro said, walking out to meet him and grab his shoulder. “What’s going on?”

The look that Shiro was met with was nothing more than pure rage, murder bubbling behind those dark violet eyes.

“Someone’s dying tonight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> :)


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hahahhahahaha sorry for disappearing for like ten days,,, i feel really bad and writing block fucking decked me tf out and i couldn’t write anything good but i hope this is okay!!! hopefully!!! If I didn’t update it today i would’ve died of shame and guilt wksjjwjdn. I’m sorry for the wait but I promise that it won’t happen again! (hopefully)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wanna do a collab so bad but i suck at people skills wisjwkndms

“Keith, wait—“ Shiro pleaded as he followed Keith out into the hallway, the faint commotion of the banquet going on behind them, the halls dimly lit with the weak flames of the propped torches, moonlight spilling in through the stained glass windows, open to let the cool fall air into the bustling castle. 

“For _what_ , Shiro?” Keith snarled, turning to glare up at the guard, his teeth bared with an anger that Shiro had never seen in him before. “It was her! All of it! She played us, Shiro!”

“That may be the case,” he started, holding his hands out as a silent gesture to calm Keith, though he doubted it like so much, if anything at all. “But that doesn’t justify just _killing_ her!”

“Lance could’ve _died_!” The words burned in his throat, a harsh reality that he couldn’t ignore, no matter how hard he tried or how real and alive Lance felt in his arms. “Acxa deserves what’s coming to her.”

“Keith, this isn’t your place.”

“I’m the prince, this is no one else’s place.”

“No, Keith, listen to me,” Shiro sighed, grabbing Keith’s shoulders to keep him from going and doing anything he would regret. “Leave this to me. We’ll deal with her, I promise. I know you’re mad, I get it, but I can’t let you do this. What would Lance say?”

Whatever protest Keith had prepared promptly died on his tongue, the image of Lance’s frightened face when Keith had ordered him flashing in his mind, and—

“Shit.” 

Keith fucked up. He fucked up big time. And it wasn’t like he could just go back in time and not command him, the deed had been done, and that gut-wrenching twist in his stomach and the sick feeling in the back of his throat told him everything he needed to know.

“Go,” Shiro said, nudging Keith in the direction of Lance’s room. “He needs you right now. We’ll deal with Acxa, but Lance cannot be alone right now.”

Keith flinched a bit, looking towards Lance’s room.

Keith wanted to see him, more than anything, but he’d messed up. He commanded him to leave, in a fit of anger, without even thinking about it. He wanted Lance to be safe, that was the intent, but of course he had to go and be such a _dick_ about it. Keith was so bad at feelings, and good god did it show.

“I don’t think he wants to see me right now.”

“Honestly Keith, I don’t really think that matters right now,” Shiro said, pushing Keith again. “Acxa doesn’t know we’re onto her, but she will if you’re stomping around in a fit of rage and Lance is hiding in his room, and who do you think she’ll go for first?”

The simple thought of Lance being attacked while alone in his room, there by Keith’s doing, with no one there to protect him, had an audible growl slipping from his lips that rumbled deep in his chest. 

“Alright,” Keith conceded, making it to Lance’s room as quickly as possible, the distant sound of Shiro gathering up several guards not even mattering to him as he approached the door.

He knocked.

“Lance?” He called out, finding himself breathless from fear.

He heard shuffling inside, most likely Lance sitting up, and he could smell the bitter scent of fear on him. Keith hated how it tainted Lance’s normal scent, but it was Keith’s fault that it had happened in the first place.

And he was going to fix it.

“Keith?” 

His voice was weak, and Keith could detect a bit of nasalization in his tone, making it kind of obvious that he had been crying. But, it was a voice, so Keith couldn’t really complain. 

“...can I come in?”

What followed was silence — from Lance at least. There was a gentle creaking on the floor below Lance’s feet, and Keith could hear the disturbance of the doorknob before he saw it move, the door slowly opening with a small click.

***

Lance’s legs were retreating against his will, the bubbly chatter in the ballroom getting farther and farther away as he quickly slinked back into his room. He closed the door behind him and immediately fell to his knees, hissing through his teeth at the sharp jolt of pain on his abdomen, his hand still resting on the doorknob when he made contact with the ground. His breaths were ragged and trembling, and he felt a small bead of sweat trickling down from his forehead, his body unusually exerted from walking that short distance from the ballroom back to his bedroom. 

He stayed on the floor for god knows how long, covered by a dark cloud of existential dread, his limbs weighed down by regret. 

He felt sick. 

Though, the floor soon became too much for his legs and, pulling himself up, Lance quickly shuffled towards the bed. If he was going to wallow in his self pity, he might as well do it somewhere comfortable.

Lance wasn’t quite sure when the tears had started, but by the time he noticed it was far too late to stop them, the reality of this fucked up situation crashing down on him like a bloodred tidal wave.

Acxa was going to die because of him.

Granted, this should’ve probably been good news to him — his tormentor was finally going to get what she deserved. But, then again, this was someone’s life they were talking about here. It was something so sacred, and Lance couldn’t bare to be the cause of it being taken away. Even if Acxa was a horrible person, there had to be a peaceful resolution to this.

Keith was probably furious. Lance couldn’t help but choke out another sudden sob at the recollection of the anger in Keith’s eyes when he’d seen the bruise on Lance’s tan skin. Lance was sure he’d never seen him so enraged.

But Lance deserved it. He deserved to be the one taking the blame. If he had just told Keith the truth back in the stables, none of this would have ever happened. God, he was such an _idiot_. He wouldn’t be surprised if Keith never wanted to see him again.

And then there was a knock.

And Lance didn’t need to hear the voice behind it to know who was at the door.

“Lance?” Keith called out, causing the Omega to rise up and look at the door with wide, glossy eyes, not daring to breathe louder than the voice behind the door.

“Keith?” Lance nearly winced at how awful he sounded. Had he really been crying that much? That’s embarrassing.

“...can I come in?”

What followed was silence — from Lance at least. Of course he wanted to let Keith in, to be comforted by the person he loved, but he was cautious. Keith was going to have questions, Lance knew that for a fact, and he played gently with the ring on his finger as he weighed out his options. In retrospect, it wasn’t a very hard decision to make.

There was a gentle creaking on the floor below Lance’s feet, and Keith could hear the disturbance of the doorknob before he saw it move, the door slowly opening with a small click.

“Please,” Lance nodded, nervous with eye contact, but Keith was not, his eyes following Lance’s shifty one’s as he slowly stepped inside. The two migrated to the bed wordlessly, Keith gently helping Lance down, since the other was still recovering from his injuries and needed to be treated with extra care.

The tension in the air was thick, the silence deafening around them, whilst Lance made a conscious effort to look everywhere _besides_ Keith. 

“Lance,” Keith said after a moment, sick of the awkward atmosphere. “I’m sorry.”

Lance blinked, turning his head to look up at Keith with a perplexed expression on his features, “ _You’re_ sorry?”

“I—“ Keith stammered, quirking a brow. “Yeah? Should I not be?”

“What did you even do?”

Keith narrowed his eyes suspiciously, trying to gauge whether or not Lance was just pulling his leg here.

“I Alpha commanded you, Lance. It was totally wrong of me to do, and I feel absolutely awful about it, and I’m sorry. You didn’t deserve that.”

“Oh,” Lance hummed, his cheeks an embarrassing shade of red a he looked back down to his lap. After a moment, he gently shook his head. “No, Keith, it’s fine.”

“It’s not fine, Lance,” Keith huffed frustratedly, thought Lance was able to tell that the frustration was directed towards Keith himself, rather than Lance’s response. “I should’ve known that there was something going on.”

“You couldn’t have known, Keith,” Lance breathed out with a gentle sigh, his lips trembling some. “I didn’t tell you.”

“Why?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Keith’s voice was soft, almost uncharacteristically so, and it tugged at Lance’s heart strings in the most painful way imaginable. “Did I… do something?”

“No!” Lance was quick to deny, shaking his head and looking up at Keith, placing his hands on Keith’s. “It wasn’t you! You did nothing wrong,” he assured, biting his lip softly. “I was just… scared.”

“Of what?” Keith knew he was probably pressing a little too much, but he had to know.

“Of Acxa, obviously,” Lance attempted to joke. “She would constantly… threaten me. I was afraid she’d somehow hurt you too, so I just… said nothing.” The statement was accompanied by a shrug, his teeth chewing a bit harder at his lower lip. “But, I should’ve told you. So, _I’m_ sorry.”

Keith stayed silent for a moment, before a soft smile formed on his lips, looking down at Lance with a fond gaze. “Thank god she didn’t hurt you again,” he sighed, and while bruises were still a thing that Lance very much had, that didn’t at all compare to the atrocity that had been Lance’s ribs. The bruise there was still going away. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if she had—“

“I’m here, Keith,” Lance interjected before Keith could get too deep into that rabbit hole of a thought. He gently squeezed around Keith’s hands, thumbs running soothingly over the knuckles. “I didn’t go anywhere, and I don’t plan on going anywhere for a long time.”

“You better not,” Keith retorted, sighing softly at Lance’s hands squeezing his own. “Or I’ll kill you myself.”

A cheery laugh bubbled from Lance’s throat, and he nodded his head.

“Noted.”

Keith cracked a smile and, with a hand placed on the back of Lance’s neck, Keith pulled Lance in to rest against his shoulder, and Lance didn’t take long to melt into the touch.

“I love you,” Keith said, breaking the silence once more, but this time, the silence was comfortable, along with Keith’s presence in general.

“I love you too,” Lance answered, never feeling more sure of anything else in his life. 

They simply sat in each other’s arms for no discernible amount of time, the warmth and love in the air completely dissolving everything else around them. Acxa didn’t matter, the banquet didn’t matter, nothing else mattered besides the other in their arms, Keith gently rocking the Omega back and forth in his arms.

And then there was a knock on the door.

And then that door opened.

It was Shiro, a few more guards behind him, and he immediately grabbed the boys’ attention.

“We caught her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLOT TWIST. this chapter was wholesome :o


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> krolia and lance are friends uwu

Lance was worried. About a lot of things.

It had been a week since the banquet now, and Lance felt so much better — physically, of course. He could breathe and walk easy, he could bend over with only a small, distant hum of pain. He still didn’t wear corsets (and it wasn’t because of the pain, he just hated them), and he had been secretly trying to persuade Keith to have the maid staff dress Lance in more pants. If Keith didn’t have to wear dresses, Lance didn’t think he should have to either.

Keith seemed at ease as well, smiling and laughing as he always did with Lance. But behind his eyes, Lance could tell that there was something there. Something sad, remorseful, even regretful, maybe. Or, perhaps Lance was just reading too much into this.

Either way there was an elephant in the room.

Acxa.

Currently, she was being held below the castle, in the dungeon, where the air reeked of mold and dirt, the light minimal, only provided from the candlelight propped up on the walls. She had been stripped of her title, the position promptly being given to someone else once the situation had be brought to the King and Queen’s attention.

“I’m choosing this time,” Krolia had said, and despite the situation, she laughed upon her husband’s protest. “And I won’t choose a psychopath, like you did.”

Putting his stress aside, Lance took over most of the wedding preparations, with Krolia’s assistance and guidance, of course. 

Keith and his father were busy all the time now, and Lance wasn’t entirely sure if he wanted to know why.

“I don’t like Keith spending so much time down there,” Lance said, an offhand comment to Krolia as they mulled over the array of desserts. “It can’t be good for his health, right?”

“I agree,” Krolia nodded, pointing to one of the pastries offered, the servant taking it away towards the kitchen once Lance gave a nod as well. “I told him so, but I’m sure you can imagine what response that got.”

Lance scoffed, his eyebrows raising. “Oh god, I can see it,” he giggled. “He probably said something all brooding, like ‘It’s what had to be done’, right?”

Krolia laughed, and Lance felt a proud feeling swelling in his chest. Any interaction with his future mother-in-law was a good one. “That’s almost exactly it.”

They both shared a laugh now, sighing amusingly, Lance looking up to meet the woman’s gaze as they both groaned at the same time.

“Alphas.”

“Lance, I must say, I’m truly sorry for what Acxa did to you,” Krolia spoke after their laughter calmed down, placing a gentle but heavy hand on his shoulder. But her tone wasn’t sad, or angry, like everyone else’s had. It was soft, and Lance was glad for that. He just wanted to be able to move past this, while most everyone wanted to linger. Wanted to stay furious and offended.

But Krolia didn’t.

“It’s alright, your highness,” Lance nodded with a smile. “The past is in the past, I’m not blaming anyone for it.”

“Keith is lucky to have you,” Krolia continued, and Lance swooned.

“Oh, stop it,” he pleaded, giggling through a smile as he looked away, hoping that his bright red cheeks weren’t _too_ bright. “I just wish I could get him to stop worrying so much.”

“Hm,” Krolia hummed, tapping her chin curiously. “Maybe there is.”

“What?”

“Lance, I’m going to show you something, but you cannot speak a word of this to Keith, or his father, you hear me?” Krolia spoke, her tone lowered slightly, so that this conversation could stay exclusively between them. 

“Loud and clear.”

Krolia grinned — a trait that Keith must’ve gotten from her — and took Lance’s hand, linking their arms together and leading him out into the hallway. Lance glanced around, brows pulled slightly, as they walked into the corridor that Lance rarely ever ventured to. In fact, he was pretty sure he’d only ever been there once, when Keith was giving him a tour of the castle his first day here.

My, how time had flown.

“In here,” Krolia said, breaking the silence and turning towards one of the doors in the hall. Lance felt the breath leave his lungs as he recognized that door, his stomach dropping.

“Are you sure?” He asked, biting his lip nervously as Krolia continued to push the door open. 

Thankfully, the room was void of other people, witnesses to what was about to take place, something this controversial. The door fell shut behind them with a loud thud that made Lance nearly leap from his skin. Even if the room had no other people inside at the moment, it was far from empty. Various swords and weapons were propped up along the walls, several dummies constructed from cotton, wood, and cloth were placed throughout the grounds, some more tattered and cut than others, the fabric frayed from the impact of what Lance could only assume was one of the swords.

“Positive,” Krolia nodded, letting go of Lance’s arm in favor of walking towards the wall adorned with blades, the woman carefully examining each one with a focused gaze. “This one,” she mumbled to herself, reaching to take one of the weapons from its place. The blade was long, slimmer in the middle before it jutted out into a wider, sharp blade. The handle was golden, with a large red gemstone engraved into the middle. From appearance alone, Lance could definitely see this weapon cutting up rows of enemies with just the right swing.

But why Krolia then tossed it at him was something he couldn’t see.

He shrieked, flinching out of the way as the blade clanked and skid across the ground. He stared at it in shock for a moment, before his gaze snapped to Krolia, eyes wide.

“Wha—“

“Next time I throw that, you’re going to catch it.”

Lance blinked, and upon a small gesture, Lance leaned down to lift the sword from the handle, huffing out a breath at how heavy it was. How could Keith hold one of these so easily? It wasn’t fair.

“What’s the point of this again?” Lance asked, voice a little wary as he watched Krolia take a sword down from the wall as well. 

“You said you wanted to make my son worry less, yes?” Krolia asked, and Lance nodded fervently. “Then you’ll need to learn how to fight.”

“To fight?” Lance chirped, a lump forming in his throat. For all eighteen years of his life, Lance had been admently protected from harm, and now he was going to learn how to head straight into harm's way? That seemed weird — was that weird? And what was even weirder was the fact that he was excited.

Krolia nodded, lifting her sword with ease, pointing it towards Lance’s chest, and he felt threatened at even such a distance. “Indeed.”

“You seem like you know what you’re doing,” Lance laughed nervously, lifting his sword up, his arms trembling from the effort.

“You’re very observant,” Krolia chuckled. “I wasn’t always a queen, you know. I was actually hoping to become a knight,” she explained with a wistful look in her eyes. “I was good too, I could beat any Alpha that game up against me.” A warm smile spread on her face. “But then I met my husband, and I realized that my duty was here, with him, ruling over the kingdom and raising our son. Doesn’t mean I shouldn’t know how to protect myself. And that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t either.”

Lance managed to smile softly at that, forgetting the weight of the sword in his hands, for only a moment, before it tipped over and he squeaked, fumbling quickly to lift it upright again. “Why is this thing so heavy?”

Krolia laughed, offering a simple shrug of his shoulders. “Trust me, there are much heavier weapons you could be holding. I told my husband that a golden handle wasn’t the wisest choice, but he didn’t listen. Besides, the heavier the weapon, the stronger you’ll become.”

“Won’t Keith be angry if he finds out you’re teaching me to sword fight?” 

“Oh, most definitely,” Krolia nodded, humming softly. “Which is why he _won’t_ find out, right?”

Lance cracked a small smirk, looking up at the sword, the red jewel reflecting his image on its surface. 

“Right.”

* * *

Lance’s arms were sore, shoulders burning with every raise of his arms. Krolia was a tough teacher, that was no lie. Every day, sometimes even multiple times a day, Lance and the Queen would meet in the training room within the castle, and she would teach Lance everything she knew. Which, Lance was figuring out, happened to be a lot. 

He could feel himself getting stronger, the muscles on his arms feeling a little tighter against the sleeves of his gown, but he was still far from being an expert swordsman. 

Keith and the King still had no idea about Lance and Krolia’s arrangement. It was difficult to discover secrets when they were too busy figuring out Acxa’s crime.

Her punishment was obvious — a crime against the future queen could only be resolved by death of the perpetrator. But, the thing they could not figure out, was why the crime was committed. Mainly because Acxa wouldn’t talk. Not a single word since she had been captured, either to profess her innocence or to admit to the crime.

Lance’s word was more than enough, and the bruises Keith had seen that night were plenty of physical evidence. And it wasn’t like they needed to convince anyone that Acxa was guilty. If the King wanted her dead, she would be dead — it was that simple.

Even locked behind rusted metal bars, Lance still felt a bit unsafe. And it was stupid, really stupid. He was completely safe. Keith had made sure of that by locking Acxa away. But there was something about having her still be alive, and within the same building no less, that kept Lance on edge. 

Perhaps that was why Lance hadn’t been opposed to the training from Krolia. He wouldn’t let himself become a liability just because of his societal role. 

Maybe the training had made him a little cocky, though.

That was one of many thoughts that raked through Lance’s mind as he slowly descended down the winding steps towards the lower level of the castle, dark cloak wrapped around him and a dark gown to match, a small candle in hand, carried on a metal holder, his fingers laced around the rounded handle, being the only source of light for quite a while. He could hear the dripping of water, and the awful stench of death and mold punched him in the gut.

This place was absolutely dreadful. 

The distant echoes of voices could be heard as Lance reached the end of the staircase, and it didn’t take long to identify both of them.

The King and Keith.

“How long do you think you can stay silent for?” Keith growled, bashing his fist against the rusted bars of the cell, his teeth snarled.

Lance peeked from around the corner, and hoped that the god awful stench would mask his scent and leave him undetected to both Alphas just a couple of dozen feet ahead of him. 

There was no answer in response to Keith, aside from another guttural growl from the prince himself and a disapproving shake of the head from his father. Lance could feel the rage radiating from his fiancé, and he gripped onto the ring tightly, reminding himself that the kind and caring man he’d fallen in love with was still there. He was just frustrated — Lance would be too.

“Fine, have it your way,” Keith grunted, and Lance could hear the exhaustion behind his voice. “But the longer you keep this facade up, the longer I will leave you down here to rot, to wither away in that dingy little cell. You disgust me.” Keith slammed his fist against the bars again, scoffing before he turned to leave, his father lingering for a moment longer before he turned away as well, both men walking up the staircase that led directly to the King’s quarters.

Once their voices had gotten far enough away, Lance stepped out into the dungeon, shuddering slightly at the immediate atmosphere of it. He slowly, cautiously, made his way towards Acxa’s cell, his free hand slipping behind the cloak to give the handle of his sword a reassuring squeeze.

“You can do this Lance,” he whispered softly to himself, gathering as much courage as he could muster. Then, he stepped in front of the cell Keith had just stood before, his gaze falling upon a sight he never thought he’d see.

Acxa was on her knees, head down down with his hair matted and greasy, shielding her face with the dark strands. Her arms were crossed behind her, two cuffs around her wrists that were connected to a chain wading out from the brick wall.

She looked pitiful.

“Acxa—“ Lance breathed out, only to be silenced in an instant when Acxa’s head snapped up, her dark, violent gaze burning a hole into him. She jumped forward, lurching suddenly from the halting force of the chains. Her teeth audibly ground together as they bared for Lance to see, and Lance nearly whipped his sword out right there and then, out of pure fear alone.

“What are _you_ doing here?” She hissed, and her voice sounded just as terrible as she looked. Trembling, deep, husky, as if on the brink of insanity.

Lance didn’t have an answer to that — he didn’t know why. Something had just told him to come. Maybe to face his fears, maybe to satisfy some part of him that wanted to see Acxa getting what she deserved. Whatever it was, he couldn’t precisely put a name on it, so he remained silent, swallowing that nervous lump that had a tendency to form in his throat.

“Why are you doing this?” Lance asked, his voice coming out much more pained than he’d anticipated. “Why can’t you just tell them what you and I both know?”

“Why, so they can have that satisfaction before they kill me?” Acxa shot back, a tired laugh accompanying the words. “Go back to being a prissy little wife. You’ve already done enough.”

“I’m not here to help you, Acxa,” Lance retorted, the bars of the cage and the chains she was bound by heightening Lance’s confidence. “We’re not friends.”

“Obviously.”

“But you look pitiful. Just tell the truth, please. If you claimed to love the kingdom so much, why not do the best thing you can for it?” Turning yourself in, Lance would’ve added, but her fate was sealed no matter what she decided to do. “Make things a least a little better, while you still have time left.”

Acxa laughed, shaking her head softly, looking down to the floor and letting his hair cover her eyes once more. “There is no more time,” she chuckled, looking up at Lance with that dark gaze again. “Things will get better,” she grinned, “They’re coming.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ;)


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this story is ending soon and im sad

_They’re coming._

Those words stuck to his brain and threw raves in his mind, keeping him from concentrating and even preventing sleep at night. So much so that Keith could even tell a difference, in his scent and in his demeanor.

“Hey, Lance, are you okay?” Keith asked one night, Lance’s back pressed up against the Alpha’s chest. It had to be many hours past midnight now, and Lance still hadn’t slept a wink. He’d pretended to, but it seemed like he could never get anything past Keith.

“Kind of a weird time to ask about my feelings,” Lance breathed out amusedly, shifting slightly in Keith’s arms to look back at him. “What’s the occasion?”

“You been acting a little strange the past few days,” Keith shrugged, leaning forward to press a gentle kiss to Lance’s temple. “I knew you were awake, so I figured I’d ask.”

“Wedding planning has just been stressful,” Lance lied, nuzzling his head against Keith’s. “That’s all.”

“Hm,” Keith hummed, grinning against Lance’s skin. “Maybe we could relive that stress.”

The offer was obvious, so much so that his words brought a harsh blush to Lance’s face. “Keith!” He gasped, scandalized, and Keith chuckled, trailing smacking kisses all over Lance’s face, which only drew laughter from the boy in his arms.

“What?” Keith asked innocently, nipping at Lance’s earlobe.

“You know what,” Lance giggled, and he couldn’t help that shiver that ran down his spine when Keith’s hands ran along his sides. “Keith—“

“Yeah?” Keith asked softly, his voice painfully close to Lance’s ear, the soft rumble of his chest causing Lance to twitch slightly. 

“We — we can't,” he stammered, breathing out shakily as Keith’s hands stopped at his hips, his thumbs rubbing small circles over the jutted bones. “You know what people will say—“

“Who cares what people say,” Keith nearly growled, gently pulling Lance closer to his body. “I want you.” There was so much weight behind those words that Lance nearly keened. Keith’s kisses resumed, trailing down to leave lingering pecks along the back of his neck, Lance’s head leaning back as a delectable little gasp left him.

“Lance,” Keith spoke out, firmly, tilting Lance’s head to face him with a gentle hand on his cheek. “If you really don’t want this, I’ll stop.”

“No,” Lance choked before his brain could even catch up with his mouth. “I want this.” And it was the truth. Lance had wanted him for a while, in a way more than gentle kisses — and the occasional makeout session — could provide. “But it’s the law.”

Those words had Keith freezing, as if he had just remembered. Which, based on how he buried his head against the juncture of Lance’s shoulder and neck with a deep groan, he did.

“Stupid law,” he grumbled, placing a small, apologetic kiss to Lance’s shoulder. “I’m dying here.”

Lance laughed, reaching a hand back to gently card through Keith’s hair. “I am too,” he nodded. “But I’d be actually dying if we did that, and I very much like living,” he added with an amused snort.

“I swear, that law is gone as soon as I’m King.”

Lance refrained from asking if Keith would feel the same way about it once they had children and they were in this position, because he already knew the answer. 

“Well, the wedding is in a week now, right?” Lance hummed, smiling softly as Keith nuzzled deeper against Lance’s neck.

“It can’t come fast enough,” he nodded, and Lance breathed out a small sigh when another kiss was pressed to his skin. “And I’m not gonna let anything stop it this time.” 

Keith’s grip tightened around Lance’s waist, a silent promise, Lance figured as he clasped his hands over Keith’s, gingerly rubbing his thumbs over the Alpha’s knuckles.

Since the incident at the banquet, Krolia had allowed Keith to sleep in Lance’s room if he pleased, which Lance was very thankful for. He wasn’t sure he could be alone and feel safe, even with a set of guards outside of the door at all times.

But Keith’s promise left a sour taste in Lance’s mouth, not by any fault of his own.

“Which is why I’d prefer you don’t go down to the dungeon,” Keith spoke, as if he could read Lance’s mind. “I’d feel much better if you stayed up here, where you’re safe. Acxa is dangerous, I want you nowhere near her.”

It was a little too late for that.

Lance nodded, however, turning his head slightly to offer Keith a warm, tired smile. “Alright.”

Stupid. Lance was so stupid.

“I won’t go down there. I promise.”

Keith smiled and leaned down, lips connecting in a gentle kiss, Lance swiftly turning his body until their chests were pressed flush against one another.

“I know we can’t have sex, but could we at least makeout?” Keith asked, lips barely leaving Lance’s with an amused little breath. 

“Oh, yes please,” Lance answered almost instantly, head nodding before their lips found each other’s again, melting into the touch so easily that it must’ve been second nature.

_They’re coming._

What the hell did that mean?

As it turned out, Lance would soon discovers the meaning of those two ominous words, whether he wanted to or not.

* * *

“Does Acxa have any friends?”

It was an offhanded question one of the following days, a simple inquiry as far as the servant was concerned while Lance was being fitted for the wedding.

“Well, she certainly doesn’t now, my dear,” the old woman spoke, and Lance nodded slowly, managing a small chuckle.

“Right, right. But _did_ she?”

“That I’m not too sure of,” the woman spoke slowly, in thought as she collected the white fabric in her arms, another two servants working to undress Lance. “Well, there was one person I’d seen talking to her.”

Lance perked up a bit, blinking. “Who was it?”

“Another guard I believe. Tall, bright orange hair, quite long actually,” she spoke, pausing for a moment between each statement to try and remember exact details. 

“And what was her name?” Appearances were nice, yes, but he couldn’t get anywhere without knowing a name.

“I believe it was Ezor,” she decided with a nod. “That was definitely it. Bubbly girl she is.”

Ezor. Lance repeated the name again and again in his mind, committing it to memory, as if he could forget it. With this matter keeping him awake at night, he didn’t think he could. 

“Was there any reason for this dear?”

“No,” he said, shaking his head gently. “Just curious. Thank you.”

Again. Stupid.

“Of course, dear,” the woman shushed. “I’d be happy to answer whatever question you have.”

Three more names.

After Lance’s short investigation with this old woman who seemed to know everything, Lance had three more names related to Acxa.

Ezor, Zethrid, Narti, and Lotor.

He’d also figured out that, aside from Ezor, none of those people were on the guard anymore. All kicked out for various reasons. Zethrid, for disobeying a direct order during war (Lance didn’t even _want_ to know what that meant). Narti, for sustaining an injury that left her blind. And Lotor, for being the one to give that injury.

Pretty morbid stuff, Lance must say. 

Aside from that, there was nothing. No strange organization of people that could be behind it, no family that would come for her, no public outcry. Just those four names.

Now that Lance was pretty sure he knew who “they” were, he just had to figure out what to do with that information.

Oh boy.

* * *

“Lance.”

The voice had Lance looking up from his gaze out of his bedroom window, a whistle of brisk air blowing in as he turned. Keith was at the doorway, wearing a warm smile, but Lance could tell it was forced.

He was forcing it for him.

“It’s time.”

Acxa’s trial. Everyone already knew what the outcome would be, it was obvious. And the day before their wedding wasn’t exactly the best day to be doing all of this, but it was the only day where Lance and Keith would be available to be present — for obvious reasons. And, with Lance being the whole reason for Acxa’s trial in the first place, he had to attend, even if that was the last thing he wanted to be apart of.

Wordlessly, Lance nodded and walked to the door, footsteps heavy on the ground, the clicking of his shoes echoing throughout the eerily empty hall. 

The walk to the throne room was long, seemingly endless, Lance arm wrapped around Keith’s, bent at the elbow. 

“Hey,” Keith spoke softly, pausing in their journey to tilt Lance’s head up with his free hand. “It’s gonna be alright.” 

“Is it?” Is what Lance _wanted_ to ask. But that would raise questions — questions he wasn’t sure he could answer. At least not truthfully. “I know,” he said instead, giving a short nod before Keith pressed a quick, yet loving kiss to Lance’s forehead.

“My prince,” a guard inquired, approaching the pair that stood now in the middle of the hallway, just at the bend of the corner. “My grace,” he added quickly, with a quick bow to Lance. “Your presences are required in the throne room.”

A fact they already knew, yes, but that didn’t make the atmosphere any more grim. A woman would be sentenced to death today, and Lance didn’t think he could bear to watch.

“Let’s go,” Keith mumbled, gripping onto Lance’s hand tighter, and they began their treck again, the murmuring of voices within the throne room growing louder and louder as they neared those large wooden double doors.

Lance paused, ripping his eyes away from the door to gaze up towards the Alpha. He obviously didn’t do a good job at hiding how he felt, as Keith’s brows pulled down some, eyes flashing with concern.

“Everything okay?” He asked softly, and Lance wasn’t sure he could answer that in the span of a few seconds.

So, instead, Lance leaned up, his lips finding Keith’s and pulling them into a kiss, slow and gentle, but full of feelings and words that neither of them could say.

“It is now,” Lance hummed after he pulled away, hearing Keith snicker softly as he turned towards the door again.

Suddenly, the doors were pulled open from the inside of the room. Lance and Keith stepped inside as their names were announced, Lance making sure to keep his head bowed as they approached the seats. Keith had a large throne next to his father, while Lance had a smaller one, as did the queen, whom he was placed next to as well.

He is no way wanted to be away from Keith, but their hands and arms had to unlink eventually, the feeling of Keith on his skin lingering as he slowly walking towards his chair. Once they were both seated, Coran yelled out again, words the rumbled Lance to his very core.

“Bring in the accused!”

Acxa was brought in in chains, her dark eyes ignoring everyone else in the room, aside from Lance. They focused solely on him, and Lance felt frozen, unable to look away even if he wanted to. And he did. He really did.

And Lance really shouldn’t have been surprised with what happened. Just like every other time, Acxa stayed silent. She didn’t answer a single question, even when the guards holding the ends of her chains attempted to beat it out of her.

Lance was going insane.

His eyes frantically scanned every inch of the room, looking for something that would stand out. Orange hair, maybe. But no matter how hard he looked, there was nothing. Everything seemed normal, and he couldn’t take it anymore.

“Who is coming?” Lance commanded, drawing the eyes of all three people sat upon their thrones, and making the room go silent. Again, Acxa did not answer. “Speak!”

Then there was a noise. Upon further inspection, it was laughter. Eerie, dark, laughter. 

“They’re not coming,” Acxa spoke, looking towards Lance with just as much fire as she did in the cell. “They’re already here.”

And then the doors were kicked open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh nooooo another cliffhanger :0 (im sorry)


	16. Announcement

Hey, this isn’t an update to the story, but I have something that I’d like to address. It’s come to my attention that this story has been reposted on wattpad by someone I don’t know, nor gave permission to do so, under the username @loveisstronggg. I have contacted wattpad to try and get the story taken down, but as of now, it is still up. 

It is very disheartening to see this happening, and to read all of the positive comments directed towards someone who simply copy and pasted my work and claimed it as their own.

If you wish to contact them or try to report it yourself, go ahead, but please do not threaten or insult them. I just want the story taken down, and then I can move on with my life.

I don’t think I’m going to post the next chapter until it is taken down. I hope you all understand how this is discouraging towards me and my writing, but I thank you all for the kind comments you have left me so far. I appreciate all of you and I look forward to your responses to the next chapter once this whole situation is worked out. 

If you’d like more information about it, feel free to message me.

Thank you all for understanding. ❤️


	17. Update

Hey guys, so it’s been a few days, and I have a few things to say.

First of all, I just want to thank each and every person who has commented on the story to spread the knowledge that this story is mine. It means more to me than I could ever express in words, and I couldn’t ask for more supportive readers. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart. ❤️

Now, back to the problem.

Three days after my first announcement about my story being stolen, nothing has really changed. Wattpad has yet to even contact me, and @loveisstronggg hasn’t responded to my messages — private and public — at all. The comments you all have left have definitely made some people realize what has happened, which is something I can be satisfied with in the midst of all of this disappointment. And maybe I’m just impatient, which is definitely a possiblility, but I just wish that someone on the Wattpad team would contact me to get the story down, since it is quite evident that the user whole stole my story has no remorse for doing so, and refuses to contact me.

I want to know if you guys would like me to update the story regardless of whether or not the story is taken down yet. While I would prefer to not post it to prevent more of my work to be stolen and passed off as someone else’s, I feel terrible for waiting so long to finish and post it in the first place.

So, really, I’m leaving this up to you guys. Do you want me to post it, or are you okay with waiting?

Again, thank you for your understanding and support during all of this so far, it truly means the world to me ❤️


	18. Another Update!!

Hey guys, I know I literally just posted an update yesterday, but I got some pretty great news today. This afternoon, @loveisstronggg responded to my messages, and apologized, then took the story down. I do not know if their account was terminated, but I haven’t been able to respond, or check any of their activities.

Regardless, I am incredibly happy that the story was taken down. This means that I can and will be continuing this story! Thank you all for your kind messages yesterday, it seems like you guys won’t have to wait as long as I feared 😊

I have to thank each and every one of you who helped me deal with this, I am incredibly blessed to have so many people who care about me and my writing.

Thank you all, and expect an update very soon!! ❤️


	19. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay!!!! an actual update!!!! i am just so sick at staring at this, so I apologize if it's bad, but i just wanted to get it published. so i hope you enjoy!!!

Everything happened so fast that Lance didn’t think he even caught anything that went down.

The loud crunch of wood under feet rippled throughout the air, the tension thick enough to slice through with a sword. Which, were promptly drawn by each guard within the room, and it was only a matter of time before even more rushed in.

Four bodies charged into the room.

Lance watched in stunned horror as guards fell underneath the swing of a sword, the group swiftly making their way towards Acxa, whose chilling smirk never left even as her chains were cut — which was damn impressive for a sword and only aided in Lance’s fear — and then she was gone.

It was at that moment that everyone seemed to tune into reality again, even if none of this felt real. He could hear Keith cursing something, and the shuffle of guards flooding out of the room to start the pursuit, along with a handful of guards surrounding the stage, but it was all a blur as he stared somewhere in the distance, eyes unfocused.

Lance felt like he was going to pass out. The edges of his vision splotched with black, and he seriously thought he was about to fall face first onto the ground, unconscious — until a pair of strong arms caught him as he stumbled. 

“You’re not allowed to faint yet,” Keith chuckled, but Lance could tell it was forced. He appreciated the attempt to lighten the mood, however.

“Sorry,” Lance mumbled, standing up a little straighter, using Keith’s shoulders to balance himself. 

“Don’t be.” He shook his head, leaning down to press a gentle, lingering kiss to Lance’s head.

“Why do these things keep happening?”

Keith laughed, genuinely at that, shrugging his shoulders.

“To keep our lives exciting, I suppose.”

“You!” 

The scream came from one of the guards in the room, who had been ordered by Shiro in the chaos to guard the royal family. A finger was pointed right at Lance, and Keith’s hold got a little tighter.

“How did you know? Are you working with the traitor?”

Lance blinked, taken aback. “What?”

In retrospect, maybe Lance shouldn’t have screamed that out. It did look bad. But working with Acxa? He would’ve laughed under any other circumstance.

“How _did_ you know?” Keith whispered, looking down at the boy in his grasp. 

“You don’t seriously think I’m involved in this, do you?”

“No!” He interjected quickly, shaking his head. “Not at all, I just…” He shook his head. “Nevermind, that doesn’t matter right now.”

Keith kiss Lance’s lips, gently and full of love, and the kiss ended much too soon, before Keith was leading Lance towards his mother.

“Watch him,” he spoke, turning away, and it finally registered in Lance’s head what Keith was doing — or about to do — when a guard handed him a sword.

There was no way he was serious, right?

“Keith!” Lance called out, and he could see Keith’s shoulders tighten for a moment, his feet hesitate as he took another step forward, but he didn’t stop. He kept walking, ignoring Lance’s calls, until he was out of the throne room entirely.

“What the hell is he doing?” Lance asked, heart lurched in his throat as he looked up at Krolia, who was wearing a solemn expression, but looked as if she expected this. “Why isn’t anything stopping him?”

“It’s his duty, as well as the King’s, to defend their kingdom,” she explained, glancing towards the guards for a moment. “You should go back to your chambers.”

“You want me to _leave_?”

“The exit to the castle is on the opposite side of your room. There are hidden passageways to each room, built for situations like this, or for when anyone needs to escape. No one will hurt you in your room, but them,” Krolia paused, looking towards the man who had shouted at Lance just a few minutes prior, who was eyeing the boy with narrow eyes and furrowed brows. “They might.”

Lance looked at the guards as well, looking away as soon as a block of fear punched him in the gut.

“How do I escape?”

* * *

Lance was never doing this again. Walking through these hidden passageways was probably the worst thing he’s ever had to do in his life. 

Granted, he hasn’t had to do a lot, but that’s not the point.

He could hear the footsteps above him, the screaming of men and the clanking of swords. He tried to listen for Keith’s voice, in any way it came out, but it never came. Terror settled in the pit of his stomach, his mind immediately settling on the worst case scenario — that he was dead. 

The very thought made Lance feel sick to his stomach.

He continued forward on legs that could barely carry him, forward towards the door that Krolia informed him led straight to his room. All the doors looked the same, and Lance was absolutely terrified of entering the wrong one and walking into his own death, or seeing something he just did not want to see. 

And yet, when he reached the door that had the scent of his floral decorations and himself and Keith on the bed, he hesitated. His hand hovered right over the handle.

His head turned to peer down the twisting hall, hardly any light coming from the small torches propped up on each wall by the doorframe, so it was dark as the corners twisted.

He knew he should go into his room, lock the door and pray he and Keith made it through this alive, and that their wedding would continue the next day as anticipated. And yet, his feet were carrying him down the hallway, slowly getting faster until he was in a full on sprint towards god knows where.

He only realized exactly where when his feet stopped, familiar scents of friends around him. He swallowed his heart back into his chest, and reached for the handle, turning it and climbing up the creaky staircase, up to where the light was blotching in from one window, almost completely blocked by a dark curtain. 

“Don’t come any closer!”

Honestly, Lance had expected this. Probably should’ve knocked before climbing in the servants quarters in the middle of a crisis.

“It’s just me!” The words came quickly and frantically, terrified of being whacked unconscious by some random tool lying around the room. Lord knows what was in there, but it certainly wasn’t any weapon. 

“Lance?” Allura lowered what she was gripping like a lifeline in obviously trembling palms — an iron pan, Lance discovered shortly — blinking at him as he propped himself out of the trap door and onto the ground, Hunk scurrying to help him to his feet. “What are you doing here?”

“The Queen told me to leave, said I should go back to my room,” he explained quickly, finding himself short of breath from fear and physical activity. Mostly fear. “But I wanted to make sure you all were okay first.”

“This is just peachy, isn’t it?” Pidge grumbled, hidden behind a wooden table, if her distant voice meant anything. “We can’t go a day without crisis, can we?”

“Everything is going to be fine, Keith and the King are taking care of it,” Lance assured. It felt strange to say, especially if he didn’t believe it entirely himself. He just had to keep convincing himself that Keith would be alright. He was a fighter, he’d make it through this. He had to. Lance would kick his ass if he didn’t.

“How did this even happen?” Hunk asked, turning away from Lance to stare towards the floor and nibble on his fingernails, a nervous tic that Lance had grown accustomed to Hunk performing. “It makes no sense.”

“Well… uh, it’s kind of… all my fault?”

Hunk turned back to him with wide eyes, blinking at the words Lance had fumbled out.

”What do you mean?”

Lance hesitated in answering. He hadn't yet uttered the words aloud, and in doing so, he would have to fully accept what was happening as his own fault. He took a shaky breath, and spoke.

”Down in the dungeon, where Acxa was being held before her trial. She… She told me something, something strange. I didn't want to believe it at first.”

”What are you talking about, Lance?” Hunk prodded again, eyes worried as Lance stared holes into the floor. 

”She told me ’they're coming’. I wasn't exactly sure what she meant by that.” He looked up. ”Until now.”

His head shot around to stare at the door, as he could hear the loud clash of swords just outside of it, the grunts of men and women alike, though it was too garbled by the thick wood to be able to determine which voice belonged to who. Behind him, he could hear whimpers of children, younger servants cowering behind their mothers and fathers, people huddled together in corners, praying that they made it through the night. 

Lance couldn't bear to see it. If he caused this mess, he was going to be damned if he didn't fix it. 

His hand slowly trailed to his ring finger, gripping right on the ring that Keith had bestowed him with, before everything went to shit. His chest squeezed with fondness, before he gently eased the band from his finger, holding it in his palm. He turned to Allura, taking her hand and placing the ring in it. 

”Lance?” She asked, brows furrowed slightly in an expression that Lance couldn't quite place — but he didn't have time to analyze it now. ”What… Why are you—”

”Keep that safe for me,” Lance said, turning to smile at her, before heading back towards the door he had entered from. ”I have something to do.”

The stairs weren't any less creaky than they were when he had first climbed up them, but they did a pretty good job at drowning out the protests of his friends just above them. 

As quickly as Lance could manage with such uncomfortable shoes on, he darted down the hall, lifting the front of his gown up some to avoid tripping over the fabric as he ran to his room. Once he reached the door Krolia had originally directed him to, he hastily climbed up the stairs, fumbling with the door and pulling himself up. 

He was short of breath, but the adrenaline was kicking in now, he could feel it, the fierce sound of swords ringing in his ears as he crawled towards his bed, stretching his arm out to blindly feel underneath it. 

”Aha!” he exclaimed as his hand wrapped around its intended target, pulling it out. 

He held sword that Krolia had given him right in his hand, taking a deep breath in. He thought it best to not try to fight someone, or at least defend himself with a dress on — plus any excuse to wear pants would be one that he took. 

So, placing his sword down on the bed, he quickly disrobed (as fast as he could, anyway), hurrying to his closet to pull out the servants uniform he had been given so long ago, or what felt like it, at least. 

Once changed, he grabbed the sword again, heading to the door and gripping the handle. 

He paused.

Was he really about to do this? He could always just, stay in his room, like Krolia told him to. Like Keith would want him to. He could die today, at the end of a sword, just like anyone. Was that a risk he was willing to take?

It was, he answered rather quickly, as he turned the knob and pushed the door open, stepping out into the corridor.

**Author's Note:**

> THANK YOU FOR READING!  
> If you enjoyed, leaving a kudos, comment, or bookmarking this would be greatly appreciated! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


End file.
